Neuroprotective effects of farnesene against hydrogen peroxide-induced neurotoxicity in vitro

Oxidative stress is highly damaging to cellular macromolecules and is also considered a main cause of the loss and impairment of neurons in several neurodegenerative disorders. Recent reports indicate that farnesene (FNS), an acyclic sesquiterpene, has antioxidant properties. However, little is known about the effects of FNS on oxidative stress-induced neurotoxicity. We used hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) exposure for 6 h to model oxidative stress. Therefore, this experimental design allowed us to explore the neuroprotective potential of different FNS isomers (α-FNS and β-FNS) and their mixture (Mix-FNS) in H2O2-induced toxicity in newborn rat cerebral cortex cell cultures for the first time. For this aim, both MTT and lactate dehydrogenase assays were carried out to evaluate cell viability. Total antioxidant capacity (TAC) and total oxidative stress (TOS) parameters were used to assess oxidative alterations. In addition to determining of 8-hydroxy-2-deoxyguanosine (8-OH-dG) levels in vitro, the comet assay was also performed for measuring the resistance of neuronal DNA to H2O2-induced challenge. Our results showed that survival and TAC levels of the cells decreased, while TOS, 8-OH-dG levels and the mean values of the total scores of cells showing DNA damage (comet assay) increased in the group treated with H2O2 alone. But pretreatment of FNS suppressed the cytotoxicity, genotoxicity and oxidative stress, which were increased by H2O2 in clear type of isomers and applied concentration-dependent manners. The order of antioxidant effectiveness for modulating H2O2-induced oxidative stress-based neurotoxicity and genotoxicity is as β-FNS > Mix-FNS > α-FNS.