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Published on: July 11, 2017
Protection from spinal cord ischemia-reperfusion damage with alpha-lipoic acid preconditioning in an animal model
Ulaş Kumbasar1, Harun Demirci2, Gökçen Emmez3
1Department of Cardiovascular Surgery, Medical Faculty of Hacettepe University, Ankara, Turkey.
Background:
This study aims to investigate whether preconditioning with alpha-lipoic acid has any protective effect in neuronal damage in an experimental spinal cord ischemia-reperfusion injury model.
Methods:
Eighteen adult male New Zealand rabbits (2.4-3.5 kg) were equally divided into sham, control and treatment groups. The abdominal aorta was occluded for 30 min proximally 1 cm below the renal artery and distally 1 cm above the bifurcation using aneurysm clips in control and treatment groups. Treatment group received intraperitoneal 100 mg/kg lipoic acid 20 min before aortic cross-clamping. The animals were sacrificed 48 hours after the operation and spinal cord segments between L2 and L5 were removed for biochemical and histopathological analysis. Levels of glutathione, malondialdehyde, total nitrate/nitrite, advanced oxidation protein products, catalase, superoxide dismutase, and glutathione peroxidase were examined in spinal cord.
Results:
Preconditioning with alpha-lipoic acid demonstrated significantly favorable effects in all measured parameters of oxidative stress. Histopathological evaluation of the tissues also demonstrated significantly decreased neuronal degeneration, axonal damage, and microglial and astrocytic infiltration in the treatment group compared to the control group.
Conclusion:
The results of this study indicate that alpha-lipoic acid administration before aortic cross-clamping has significant neuroprotective effect on spinal cord injury in rabbits.
