Vitamin C antioxidant effects in hippocampus of adult Wistar rats after seizures and status epilepticus induced by pilocarpine.

Vitamin C (VIT C) is an exogenous antioxidant able to alter the brain oxidative stress. Antioxidant properties have been showed in seizures and status epilepticus (SE) induced by pilocarpine in adult rats. This present study was aimed at was investigating the VIT C effects on latency to first seizure, in percentage of seizures, mortality rate, as well as hippocampal lipid peroxidation levels and catalase activity after seizures and SE. The VIT C effects were investigated after the pretreatment with dose 250 mg/kg, i.p., 30 min before pilocarpine administration (400mg/kg, s.c., pilocarpine group (P400)). The VIT C increase the latency to first seizure and decrease the mortality rate and lipid peroxidation levels. In P400+VIT C and VIT C groups were observed an increase in hippocampal catalase activity. Our results suggests that the vitamin C can exert antioxidant and anticonvulsive effects in adult rats, suggesting that this vitamin can be able by reduction of lipid peroxidation content and increased of catalase enzymatic activity which cerebral compensatory mechanisms in free radical formation during SE.