Indomethacin ameliorates ischemic neuronal damage in the gerbil hippocampal CA1 sector.

The purpose of our experiment was to examine whether the cyclooxygenase inhibitor indomethacin ameliorates neuronal injury in the gerbil hippocampal CA1 sector following 5 minutes of forebrain ischemia. Thirty minutes before bilateral carotid artery occlusion, Mongolian gerbils were injected intraperitoneally with 1 (n = 10), 2 (n = 10), 5 (n = 12), or 10 (n = 7) mg/kg of indomethacin. Seven days after occlusion, the gerbils were perfusion-fixed and neuronal density in the hippocampal CA1 sector was assessed. The mean +/- SEM neuronal density in nine unoperated normal gerbils was 307 +/- 9/mm, in 10 untreated ischemic gerbils 55 +/- 21/mm, and in seven vehicle-treated ischemic gerbils 15 +/- 9/mm. The mean +/- SEM neuronal density in ischemic gerbils treated with 1, 2, 5, or 10 mg/kg indomethacin was 132 +/- 28/mm, 154 +/- 29/mm, 176 +/- 30/mm, and 136 +/- 39/mm, respectively. Indomethacin at any dose significantly ameliorated ischemic neuronal damage in the gerbil hippocampal CA1 sector.