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Protective Effects of Aqueous Extract of Luehea divaricata against Behavioral and Oxidative Changes Induced by 3-Nitropropionic Acid in Rats

2015; Hindawi Publishing Corporation; Volume: 2015; Linguagem: Inglês

10.1155/2015/723431

1741-4288

Aline Alves Courtes, Letícia Priscilla Arantes, Rômulo Pillon Barcelos, Ingrid Kich da Silva, Aline Augusti Boligon, Margareth Linde Athayde, Robson Luiz Puntel, Félix Alexandre Antunes Soares,

Mitochondrial Function and Pathology

Huntington’s disease (HD) is an autosomal dominant neurodegenerative disease. Accordingly, 3-nitropropionic acid (3-NP) has been found to effectively produce HD-like symptoms. Luehea divaricata ( L. divaricata ), popularly known in Brazil as “açoita-cavalo,” may act as a neuroprotective agent in vitro and in vivo . We evaluated the hypothesis that the aqueous extract of L. divaricata could prevent behavioral and oxidative alterations induced by 3-NP in rats. 25 adult Wistar male rats were divided into 5 groups: (1) control, (2) L. divaricata (1000 mg/kg), (3) 3-NP, (4) L. divaricata (500 mg/kg) + 3-NP, and (5) L. divaricata (1000 mg/kg) + 3-NP. Groups 2, 4, and 5 received L. divaricata via intragastric gavage daily for 10 days. Animals in groups 3, 4, and 5 received 20 mg/kg 3-NP daily from days 8–10. At day 10, parameters of locomotor activity and biochemical evaluations were performed. Indeed, rats treated with 3-NP showed decreased locomotor activity compared to controls. Additionally, 3-NP increased levels of reactive oxygen species and lipid peroxidation and decreased ratio of GSH/GSSG and acetylcholinesterase activity in cortex and/or striatum. Our results suggest that rats pretreated with L. divaricata prior to 3-NP treatment showed neuroprotective effects when compared to 3-NP treated controls, which may be due to its antioxidant properties.