Safranal, a Saffron Constituent, Attenuates Retinal Degeneration in P23H Rats

Abstract

Saffron, an extract from Crocus sativus, has been largely used in traditional medicine for its antiapoptotic and anticarcinogenic properties. In this work, we investigate the effects of safranal, a component of saffron stigmas, in attenuating retinal degeneration in the P23H rat model of autosomal dominant retinitis pigmentosa. We demonstrate that administration of safranal to homozygous P23H line-3 rats preserves both photoreceptor morphology and number. Electroretinographic recordings showed higher a- and b-wave amplitudes under both photopic and scotopic conditions in safranal-treated versus non-treated animals. Furthermore, the capillary network in safranal-treated animals was preserved, unlike that found in untreated animals. Our findings indicate that dietary supplementation with safranal slows photoreceptor cell degeneration and ameliorates the loss of retinal function and vascular network disruption in P23H rats. This work also suggests that safranal could be potentially useful to retard retinal degeneration in patients with retinitis pigmentosa.

Inherent Instability of the Retinitis Pigmentosa P23H Mutant Opsin

“…Frederick et al (60) then generated a P23H TG mouse on a rhodopsin knock-out background, and they reported that GHL (P23H)/ Rho Ϫ/Ϫ mice failed to form ROS and that P23H rhodopsin mainly accumulated in the outer nuclear layer. P23H TG rat line-3 is the most commonly used animal model for gene therapy and drug testing (12,21,22,(77)(78)(79)(80)(81)(82)(83), but immunochemistry showed rhodopsin is localized in the ROS of this TG rat (84). The P23H transgene has also been expressed in Xenopus, revealing an inner segment accumulation (10).…”

Cellular responses following retinal injuries and therapeutic approaches for neurodegenerative diseases

“…(2) Vascular degeneration, when retinal vessels degenerate as a result of a reduction in oxygen consumption (Fig. 15B), such as in RP (Fernandez-Sanchez et al, 2012a;Pennesi et al, 2008).…”

Neuroprotective effect of safranal, an active ingredient of Crocus sativus , in a rat model of transient cerebral ischemia

“…Safranal possesses a wide range of properties such as being anti-oxidant [3,13], anti-inflammatory [9,14], antidiabetic [21,28], antiseizure [11,12,24], anxiolytic [6], anti-hypertensive [16], cytoprotective [4] and anti-carcinogenic [22]. In our previous research, safranal displayed obvious protective effects on brain injury induced by transient global cerebral ischemia in rats [10].…”