Hydroxysafflor yellow A protects neuron against hypoxia injury and suppresses inflammatory responses following focal ischemia reperfusion in rats.

Previous data demonstrated that hydroxysafflor yellow A (HSYA), a yellow color pigments extracted from the safflower, was an effective agent against focal cerebral ischemia. In the present study we demonstrated that HSYA prevented the injury in cultured cerebral cortical neurons induced by oxygen-glucose deprivation and increased the cell viability, as shown by the inhibition of both LDH and NO efflux. Further, HSYA administered orally 3 d before middle cerebral artery occlusion has the capacity to reduce cerebral infarct size and edema after 2 h cerebral ischemia followed by 24 h reperfusion in rats, and to significantly improve neurological behavior scores. Mean while, treatment with HSYA significantly decreased both mRNA and protein levels of IL-1beta, TNF-alpha in ischemic brain tissue. These results suggested that the protection of HSYA results from, at least in part, suppression of inflammatory responses following focal ischemia reperfusion.