Backgrounds/Aims: Pycnogenol (PYC) is a patented mix of bioflavonoids with potent anti-oxidant and anti-inflammatory properties. In this study, we investigated the effects of PYC on oxygen-glucose deprivation/reoxygenation (OGD/R)-induced injury in primary rat astrocytes. Methods: The primary rat astrocytes were randomly divided into 6 groups, blank control, OGD/R, OGD/R+PYC (10, 20, 40, and 60 µg/mL). The cell activity were detected by MTT and LDH assays, then the levels of oxidant products [malondialdehyde (MDA) and reactive oxygen species (ROS)] , antioxidants [superoxide dismutase (SOD)], mitochondrial membrane potential (MMP) and inflammatory cytokines were detected. In addition, the expression levels of apoptosis-related proteins (Bax, Bcl-2 and Cleaved caspase 3), proinflammatory factors (NF-κB p65), and p-ERK1/2 were measured by Western blot analysis. Results: The results showed that PYC incubation dose-dependently attenuated cell viability loss, LDH leakage, oxidative stress, inflammatory cytokines accumulation and cell apoptosis caused by OGD/R. Furthermore, PYC pretreatment dose-dependently suppressed OGD/R-induced NF-κB p65 nuclear translocation, NF-κB activity and ERK1/2 phosphorylation. Similarly to PYC, NF-κB inhibitor PDTC and ERK1/2 inhibitor PD098059 dramatically inhibited OGD/R-induced NF-κB activation, ERK1/2 phosphorylation, and ROS production, as well as TNF-α secretion. Conclusions: These findings revealed that PYC has neuroprotective effects against OGD/R-induced injury via NF-κB and ERK1/2 pathways in primary rat astrocytes.

Background: it was a meta-analysis on the efficacy of statins in the treatment of atherosclerosis Methods: The PubMed, Medline, Embase, Web of Sciences, and other Chinese and English databases were used to retrieve literature on randomized controlled trials (RCTs) of statins in the treatment of atherosclerosis, published from January 2000 to January 2021. The Cochrane Handbook for Systematic Reviews of Intervention 5.0.2 was used to conduct bias risk assessment, and Review Manager 5.3 software (RevMan) was used for meta-analysis.Results: A total of 12 articles with 1,180 participants were included in the meta-analysis. In the observation group, the plaque area [mean difference (MD) =−1.