Neurotherapeutic Potential of Cervus elaphus Sibericus on Axon Regeneration and Growth Cone Reformation after H2O2-Induced Injury in Rat Primary Cortical Neurons

Abstract

Cervus elaphus sibericus (CES), commonly known as deer antler, has been used as a medicinal herb because of its various pharmacological activities, including its anti-infective, anti-arthritic, anti-allergic, and anti-oxidative properties. However, the precise mechanisms by which CES functions as a potent anti-oxidative agent remain unknown; particularly, the effects of CES on cortical neurons and its neurobiological mechanism have not been examined. We used primary cortical neurons from the embryonic rat cerebral cortex and hydrogen peroxide to induce oxidative stress and damage in neurons. After post-treatment of CES at three concentrations (10, 50, and 200 µg/mL), the influence of CES on the neurobiological mechanism was assessed by immunocytochemistry, flow cytometry, and real-time PCR. CES effectively prevented neuronal death caused by hydrogen peroxide-induced damage by regulating oxidative signaling. In addition, CES significantly induced the expression of brain-derived neurotrophic factor and neurotrophin nerve growth factor, as well as regeneration-associated genes. We also observed newly processing elongated axons after CES treatment under oxidative conditions. In addition, filopodia tips generally do not form a retraction bulb, called swollen endings. Thus, CES shows therapeutic potential for treating neurological diseases by stimulating neuron repair and regeneration.

Current and future outlook of loaded components in hydrogel composites for the treatment of chronic diabetic ulcers

“…In addition, the cited literature reports few plant extracts applied to nerve regeneration, but in fact, current research shows that many herbs have the function of promoting Schwann cell proliferation as well as nerve regeneration, such as Cervus elaphus sibericus (CES) ( Hong et al, 2021b ), Alpinia oxyphylla ( Ju et al, 2015 ; Chang et al, 2017 ; Duan et al, 2020 ), Centella asiatica ( Soumyanath et al, 2005 ; Gregory et al, 2021 ), Achyranthes bidentata polypeptides (ABPP) ( Cheng et al, 2014 ), emodin ( Leung et al, 2020 ), Inula britannica var. chinensis (IBC) ( Hong et al, 2021a ), and Ramulus cinnamomi ( Yang H et al, 2017 ).…”