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Neuroprotective effect of (–)-epigallocatechin-3-gallate in rats when administered pre- or post-traumatic brain injury

  • Neurology and Preclinical Neurological Studies - Original Article
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Abstract

Our previous study indicated that consuming (–)-epigallocatechin gallate (EGCG) before or after traumatic brain injury (TBI) eliminated free radical generation in rats, resulting in inhibition of neuronal degeneration and apoptotic death, and improvement of cognitive impairment. Here we investigated the effects of administering EGCG at various times pre- and post-TBI on cerebral function and morphology. Wistar rats were divided into five groups and were allowed access to (1) normal drinking water, (2) EGCG pre-TBI, (3) EGCG pre- and post-TBI, (4) EGCG post-TBI, and (5) sham-operated group with access to normal drinking water. TBI was induced with a pneumatic controlled injury device at 10 weeks of age. Immunohistochemistry and lipid peroxidation studies revealed that at 1, 3, and 7 days post-TBI, the number of 8-Hydroxy-2′-deoxyguanosine-, 4-Hydroxy-2-nonenal- and single-stranded DNA (ssDNA)-positive cells, and levels of malondialdehyde around the damaged area were significantly decreased in all EGCG treatment groups compared with the water group (P < 0.05). Although there was a significant increase in the number of surviving neurons after TBI in each EGCG treatment group compared with the water group (P < 0.05), significant improvement of cognitive impairment after TBI was only observed in the groups with continuous and post-TBI access to EGCG (P < 0.05). These results indicate that EGCG inhibits free radical-induced neuronal degeneration and apoptotic death around the area damaged by TBI. Importantly, continuous and post-TBI access to EGCG improved cerebral function following TBI. In summary, consumption of green tea may be an effective therapy for TBI patients.

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Acknowledgments

This work was supported by Grants-in-Aid for Scientific Research (23500629 and 24501009) and a 2012 research grant of the Kao Research Council for the Study of Healthcare Science. The authors thank Mari Yachi for technical assistance.

Conflict of interest

The authors declare they have no conflict of interest.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Pathology, Kinki University Faculty of Medicine, 377-2 Ohno-higashi, Osakasayama, Osaka, 589-8511, Japan

    Tatsuki Itoh, Akihiko Ito & Takao Satou

  2. Department of Biochemistry, Kinki University Faculty of Medicine, Osaka, Japan

    Masaki Tabuchi & Hiroshi Munakata

  3. Life Science Research Institute, Kinki University, Osaka, Japan

    Nobuyuki Mizuguchi

  4. Department of Surgery, Kinki University Faculty of Medicine, Osaka, Japan

    Motohiro Imano

  5. Faculty of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Kinki University, Osaka, Japan

    Masahiro Tsubaki, Shozo Nishida, Kazuhiko Matsuo & Takashi Nakayama

  6. Department of Pathology, PL Hospital, Osaka, Japan

    Shigeo Hashimoto

  7. Division of Hospital Pathology, Hospital of Kinki University Faculty of Medicine, Osaka, Japan

    Takao Satou

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  1. Tatsuki Itoh
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  2. Masaki Tabuchi
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Correspondence to Tatsuki Itoh.

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Itoh, T., Tabuchi, M., Mizuguchi, N. et al. Neuroprotective effect of (–)-epigallocatechin-3-gallate in rats when administered pre- or post-traumatic brain injury. J Neural Transm 120, 767–783 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00702-012-0918-4

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