Mechanisms of multiple neurotransmitters in the effects of Lycopene on brain injury induced by Hyperlipidemia.

backgroundLycopene is a kind of carotenoid, with a strong capacity of antioxidation and regulating the bloodlipid. There has been some evidence that lycopene has protective effects on the central nervous system, but few studies have rigorously explored the role of neurotransmitters in it. Therefore, the present study was designed to investigate the effects of several neurotransmitters as lycopene exerts anti-injury effects induced by hyperlipidemia.

methodsEighty adult SD rats, half male and half female, were randomly divided into eight groups on the basis of serum total cholesterol (TC) levels and body weight. There was a control group containing rats fed a standard laboratory rodent chow diet (CD); a hypercholesterolemic diet (rat chow supplemented with 4% cholesterol, 1% cholic acid and 0.5% thiouracil - this is also called a CCT diet) group; a positive group (CCT + F) fed CCT, supplemented with 10 mg·kg·bw

resultsAt the end of the experiment, the levels of TC, TG, LDL-C, IL-1, TNF-α, and ox-LDL in the serum and brain as well as the content of Glu, DA, NMDA, and D

conclusionsLycopene exerts anti-injury effects in the brain as-induced by hyperlipidemia. It can inhibit the elevation of serum TC, TG, and LDL-C in rats with hyperlipidemia while indirectly affecting the levels of TC, TG, and LDL-C in the brain, leading to a reduction in ox-LDL, IL-1, and TNF-α in the brain. This inhibits the release of Glu, which weakens nerve toxicity and downregulates pro-apoptotic Caspase3. Lycopene also plays an anti-injury role by promoting the release of the inhibitory neurotransmitter GABA and 5-HT, which enhances the protective effect, and by upregulating the anti-apoptotic bcl-2.