Siberian ginseng, the root and stem bark of Acanthopanax senticosus Harms, has been used as a tonic and adaptogen to strengthen qi in traditional Korean medicine. The neuroprotective effects of water extracts of A. senticosus (ASW) were investigated in transient middle cerebral artery occlusion (MCAo, 90 min occlusion, 24 h reperfusion) of Sprague-Dawley rats. The infarct volume was significantly reduced by 36.6% after the peritoneal injection of ASW (100 mg[sol ]kg) compared with the control. In the immunohistochemical study, ASW markedly inhibited both cyclooxygenase-2 and OX-42 expressions in the penumbral region at 24 h after MCAo. These results suggest that A. senticosus has a neuroprotective effect by inhibiting inflammation and microglial activation in brain ischaemia.
Copyright 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.