Department of Medical Research, Tzu Chi General Hospital, Hualien, Taiwan.
J Neurosurg. 2012 Jan;116(1):193-200. doi: 10.3171/2011.8.JNS101637. Epub 2011 Oct 7.
Intracerebral hemorrhage (ICH) accounts for about 15% of all deaths due to stroke. It frequently causes brain edema, leading to an expansion of brain volume that exerts a negative impact on ICH outcomes. The ICH-induced brain edema involves inflammatory mechanisms. The authors' in vitro study shows that urocortin (UCN) exhibits antiinflammatory and neuroprotective effects. Therefore, the neuroprotective effect of UCN on ICH in rats was investigated.
Intracerebral hemorrhage was induced by an infusion of bacteria collagenase type VII-S or autologous blood into the unilateral striatum of anesthetized rats. At 1 hour after the induction of ICH, UCN (0.05, 0.5, and 5 μg) was infused into the lateral ventricle on the ipsilateral side. The authors examined the injury area, brain water content, blood-brain barrier permeability, and neurological function.
The UCN, administered in the ipsilateral lateral ventricle, was able to penetrate into the injured striatum. Posttreatment with UCN reduced the injury area, brain edema, and blood-brain barrier permeability and improved neurological deficits of rats with ICH.
Posttreatment with UCN through improving neurological deficits of rats with ICH dose dependently provided a potential therapeutic agent for patients with ICH or other brain injuries.
脑出血（ICH）约占所有中风死亡病例的 15%。ICH 常导致脑水肿，使脑体积扩大，对 ICH 结果产生负面影响。ICH 诱导的脑水肿涉及炎症机制。作者的体外研究表明，孤啡肽（UCN）具有抗炎和神经保护作用。因此，研究了 UCN 对大鼠 ICH 的神经保护作用。
通过向麻醉大鼠单侧纹状体输注细菌胶原酶 VII-S 或自体血来诱导 ICH。ICH 诱导后 1 小时，将 UCN（0.05、0.5 和 5μg）注入同侧侧脑室。作者检查了损伤面积、脑水含量、血脑屏障通透性和神经功能。
侧脑室给药的 UCN 能够穿透受伤的纹状体。UCN 治疗后可减少 ICH 大鼠的损伤面积、脑水肿和血脑屏障通透性，并改善其神经功能缺损。
UCN 通过改善 ICH 大鼠的神经功能缺损，为 ICH 或其他脑损伤患者提供了一种潜在的治疗药物。
