Neuroprotective effect of selenium on iminodipropionitrile-induced toxicity.

The present investigation was undertaken to study the effect of selenium on experimental dyskinesia in rats. The movement disorders were produced in rats by intraperitoneal administration of iminodipropionitrile (IDPN) in the dose of 100 mg/kg per day for 12 days. Selenious acid was administered daily 30 minutes before IDPN in the doses of 5 mumol/kg, 10 mumol/kg and 20 mumol/kg bodyweight in three different groups of rats. Animals were observed daily for any neurobehavioral changes including circling, backwalking, head weaving and twitching. Immediately after behavioral studies, blood and brain specimens were collected for analysis of thiobarbituric acid reactive substances (TBARS) to measure the extent of free radical production. Our results showed that concurrent use of selenium significantly inhibited IDPN-induced neurobehavioral changes in a dose-dependent manner. Treatment of rats with selenium also reduced the TBARS production in blood and different regions of brain. These findings suggest that selenium attenuates the IDPN-induced neurotoxicity by inhibiting lipid peroxidation.