Influence of a 'brain protector' drug 21-amino steroid on the effects of experimental embolic stroke treated by thrombolysis.

This study was designed to evaluate the effects of tissue-type plasminogen activator (tPA) and 21- amino steroid (U74006F) in experimental embolic stroke in rabbits. The size of infarction from embolism was compared to controls with tPA alone, 21-amino steroid alone, and in combination. The middle cerebral artery of the rabbit was embolized by injecting an arterial ('white') thrombus in the right internal carotid artery. The rabbit treatment was 2 mg kg-1 of tissue-type plasminogen activator and/or 3 mg kg-1 of 21 amino steroid started at 2 h post-embolization. The animals were terminated 4 h post-treatment and brains were examined for evidence of ischemia and/or hemorrhage. Administration of tissue-type plasminogen activator and/or 21-amino steroid in the raw data show that there is a tendency for all treatments to reduce the ischemic volume when compared to the control group, also it is evident the standard deviation of these estimates is rather large when compared to the differences between treatments. The results of the analysis of variance shows that the differences expressed are not statistically significant. (No statistical differences were found between the treatment groups and the control group.) The results show that administration of tissue-type plasminogen activator and/or 21 amino steroid at 2 h post-embolization alone or in simultaneous administration does not significantly reduce the volume of infarction. Further studies need to be addressed in regards to the region of viable brain in the peri-infarct area, in reducing the time to treatment.