Effects of alpha-tocopherol associated with lovastatin on brain tissue and memory function in SHRSPs

Abstract

Strokes are preceded by oxidative stress and inflammation, two processes linked to atherosclerosis and hypertension. Statins have been widely employed to control atherosclerosis; however, there could be neurological implications to its use—including cognitive impairment. Thus,we aimed to determine whether alpha-tocopherol is capable of reversing the neurological side effects of statins and enhancing its anti-inflammatory properties. To assess these effects, 15-week-old stroke-prone spontaneously hypertensive rats (SHRSPs) were divided into four groups (n = 6, each): alpha-tocopherol (AT), lovastatin (LoV), alpha-tocopherol + lovastatin (AT + LoV), and control (C).We administered 120 IU of alpha-tocopherol diluted in 0.1 ml of coconut oil,whereas the dose of lovastatin was administered at a ratio of 1 mg/kg of rat body weight. The control group received 0.1 ml coconut oil. All animals received the treatments via orogastric gavage.We assessed body weight, diuresis, food and water intake, oxidative stress (malondialdehyde levels), the total cellular injury marker (lactate dehydrogenase), short and long-term memory, cognition, and histopathological changes in the hippocampus. The results demonstrated that lovastatin treatment did not negatively affect the memory of our animal model. In fact, the animals treated with AT and LoV showed improvement in memory and cognition. Additionally, both treatments decrease lactate dehydrogenase and oxidative stress levels. Furthermore, our study also demonstrated hippocampal tissue preservation in the treated groups.

Pre- and post-treatment of α-Tocopherol on cognitive, synaptic plasticity, and mitochondrial disorders of the hippocampus in icv-streptozotocin-induced sporadic Alzheimer’s-like disease in male Wistar rat

“…The presented results revealed that the recognition index was significantly lower in the α-Tocopherol induced groups (STZ + α-Tocopherol 14) than in the icv-STZ group. Consistent with our data, Guimaraes et al (2015) showed that α-Tocopherol could modulate memory formation and preserve cognition in the Stork model ( Guimaraes et al, 2015 ). Sarmento-Silva et al (2014) conducted the antioxidant effects of α-Tocopherol in improving motor and cognitive deficits induced by chronic reserpine in rats.…”

Cerebrolysin improves memory and ameliorates neuronal atrophy in spontaneously hypertensive, aged rats

“…Beside our results suggest that chronic Cbl administration, improved the memory function in the aged SH rats with a trend to reduce locomotor hyperactivity in a novel environment. Interestingly, several reports suggested that SH rats showed spatial memory deficits with hyperactivity behavior (Gr€ unblatt et al, 2015;Guimarães et al, 2015;Kaiser et al, 2014;Yin et al, 2014). Therefore, SH rats are used as an animal model of attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (AD/HD) and animal model of VD.…”

Association of Serum Alpha-Tocopherol and Retinol with the Extent of Coronary Lesions in Coronary Artery Disease

“…Vitamin A is also important for maintaining immune function and plays an essential role in the development of T-helper and B cells [13]. The primary forms of vitamin A are retinol, retinoic acid, and retinal, whereas the form stored in the liver is retinyl palmitate [14].…”