Therapeutic effects of green-formulated gold nanoparticles by Origanum majorana on spinal cord injury in rats

Abstract

In a recent study, we evaluated the remedial properties of gold nanoparticles (gold NPs) green-formulated by Origanum majorana on spinal cord injury in rats. UV-Vis, FE-SEM, FT-IR, and TEM tests were applied to characterize the recent gold NPs. The IC50 values of O. majorana, gold NPs, and butylated hydroxytoluene were 382, 250, and 165 µg/mL, respectively, against DPPH. In in vivo tests, 40 male rats were grouped into four groups: the sham, intact, control, and gold NP (50 µg/kg) groups. Hematoxylin and eosin staining was done to test the lesions post-injury. To determine the neural conduction recovery, somatosensory evoked potential experiments were carried out. For determining the astrogliosis, the GFAP expression was evaluated. All rats were assessed for behavior outcomes using the Basso, Beattie, and Bresnahan (BBB) scores every week after spinal cord injury onset. The neuroprotective effects of gold NPs caused improvement in the spinal cord injury contusive model in Wistar rats. Delayed responses were reduced significantly and BBB scores were raised significantly in the gold NP group on sensory tests. The highest reduction in GFAP was evident in the gold NP group. The ventral motor neuron number raised significantly and cavity areas reduced significantly in the gold NP group. Electromyography findings indicated notable improvement of hindlimbs in the gold NP (50 µg/kg) group.

Keywords

• spinal cord injury
• neuroprotective activities
• origanum majorana
• gold nanoparticles