An Evaluation of the Effectiveness of Melatonin and n-Acetylcysteine in Cerebral Ischemia-Reperfusion Injury in Adult Rats

Abstract

Background and Objectives: The purpose of this study was to apply histopathological and immunohistochemical methods to compare the protective efficacy of melatonin and N-acetylcysteine (NAC) application in rats with experimental brain ischemia/reperfusion (I/R) injury induced through occlusion of the middle cerebral artery (MCA), and to evaluate the protective effect of their combined use. Materials and Methods: Forty-one young adult male Wistar albino rats were divided into five groups—control (n = 8), I/R group (n = 8), melatonin (n = 8), NAC (n = 8), and melatonin + NAC (n = 9). Results: All scores differed between the groups, apart from vascular congestion (p p p p Conclusions: The combined use of NAC and melatonin, the neuroprotective efficacy of which on histopathological parameters is shown in this study, now needs to be supported by further research.

Keywords

• melatonin
• middle cerebral artery occlusion
• ischemia-reperfusion
• n-acetylcysteine