Xenon (Xe) is an inert, colorless and odorless heavy gas and has many biological functions. However, little is known about whether and how Xe can modulate hypoxic-ischemic brain damage (HIBD) in neonatal rats. This study employed a neonatal rat model to explore the potential effect of Xe on neuron autophagy and the severity of HIBD. Neonatal Sprague-Dawley rats were subjected to HIBD, randomized and treated with Xe or mild hypothermia (at 32 °C) for 3 h. The degrees of HIBD, neuron autophagy and the neuronal functions in some neonates from each group were tested by histopathology, immunochemistry, transmission electron microscopy, western blot, open-field and Trapeze tests at 3 and 28 days post-induction of HIBD, respectively. Compared with the Sham group, hypoxic-ischemia caused larger volumes of cerebral infarction and severe brain damage, and increased autophagosome formation and Beclin-1 and microtubule-associated protein 1A/1B-light chain 3 class II (LC3-II) expression in the brain of rats, accompanied by the defect in neuronal functions. In contrast, treatment with Xe and/or hypothermia significantly reduced infarct volumes and ameliorated neurological defects in the HIBD rats, particularly for the combination of Xe and hypothermia. Xe significantly mitigated the relative levels of Beclin-1 and LC3-II expression and autophagosome formation induced by HIBD in rats. Xe acted as a neuroprotective factor against HIBD, possibly by inhibiting the hypoxia-induced neuron autophagy in rats.
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