[Antioxidants prevent experimental hemiparkinsonism in rats]

We studied the influence of antioxidants (trolox, melatonin and coenzyme Q10) on 6-hydroxydopamine-induced degeneration in the substantia nigra dopaminergic neurons from the left brain hemisphere. In rats, the level of unilateral degeneration of nigrostriatal dopaminergic system was estimated on the base of an intensity of rotation movements which were contralateral to denervated hemishere and resulted from systemic injections of a dopamine receptor agonist apomorphine. It has been shown that all tested antioxidants reduced a number of animals with apomorphine-induced behavioral asymmetry in a different degree: coenzyme Q10 reduced it twofold, trolox - fivefold and melatonin - sevenfold. We suggest that a neuroprotective effects of trolox, melatonin and coenzyme Q10 are associated with their ability to block the mitochondrial pore openings in the nervous cells under exploration, and this is the way to prevent apoptotic death. An oxidative stress has been proved to take part in the apoptosis in dopamine-producing neurons in the substantia nigra, and tested antioxidants have been shown to be effective in preventing neurodegeneration.