Effect of Coenzyme Q10 (ubiquinone) on hippocampal CA1 pyramidal cells following transient global ischemia/reperfusion in male wistar rat

Document Type : Original Article

Abstract

Ischemia/Reperfusion (I/R)-induced cerebral injury has been reported as a leading cause of death
and long-term disabilities. Hippocampus is an area which is more sensitive to be affected by I/R
and hypoxic conditions. Coenzyme Q10 is a strong antioxidant which plays a role in membrane
stabilization. This study aims to investigate the possible role of CoQ10 in ameliorating the
histomorphological changes in the hippocampal CA1 pyramidal cells induced by cerebral I/R.
Thirty six adult male wistar rats were divided into six groups, each group consisting of six
rats, including control, ischemia, vehicle and CoQ10-treated (10, 50,100 mg/kg). In treatment
groups, rats were orally administered CoQ10 during five days before and three days after I/R.
Global cerebral ischemia was induced by bilateral common carotid arteries occlusion for about
20 minutes, followed by reperfusion. H&E and Nissl staining were utilized for some qualitative
and quantitative studies. Then the histomorphological changes were measured by Image Tools
2 software.
The data analysis showed a significant reduction in the number of CA1 pyramidal cells after I/R;
whearas, no significant difference was seen in the number of cells in mentioned region between
control and 100 mg/kg CoQ10-treated groups.
The findings indicate the neurotrophic properties of CoQ10 and support the beneficial effects of
CoQ10 as an adjuvant therapy in patients who have risk factor(s) of ischemic stroke.

Keywords

• Hippocampus
• Ischemia
• Reperfusion
• Coenzyme Q10
• Rat

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