Alpha-asarone, a major active component isolated from Acorus gramineus, can affect brain functions and behaviors by multiple mechanisms. However, the effect of alpha-asarone on cerebral ischemia–reperfusion (CIR) stroke has not been reported. The present study aimed to investigate the neuroprotective effect of alpha-asarone and the involved mechanisms against CIR stroke. Rats were subjected to middle cerebral occlusion (MCAO) for 2 h. Then the drug or drug-free vehicle was intravenously injected to corresponding groups. After reperfusion for 24 h, the infarct volume was evaluated by Triphenyl Tetrazolium Chloride (TTC) staining. The neurofunctional recovery and post-stroke epilepsy were evaluated. Nissl and Hematoxylin–Eosin (H&E) staining were used for histological observation. We investigated the protective mechanism of alpha-asarone against the stroke. The results showed that alpha-asarone exhibited a desirable neuroprotective effect, manifested as reducing infarct volume and post-stroke epilepsy and improving neurological function. Histological and flow cytometry analysis revealed that alpha-asarone treatment alleviated cell injury and apoptosis in vivo and in vitro. Furthermore, alpha-asarone decreased GFAP, Iba-1, and LC3II/LC3I expression and increased the expression of p62. These results suggested that alpha-asarone attenuated the CIR stroke injury via ameliorating glial activation and autophagy.

Alpha-asarone 是一种从 Acorus gramineus 中分离出来的主要活性成分，可以通过多种机制影响大脑功能和行为。然而，α-细辛醚对脑缺血再灌注（CIR）中风的影响尚未见报道。本研究旨在研究 α-细辛酮的神经保护作用以及对抗 CIR 中风的相关机制。大鼠进行大脑中段闭塞（MCAO）2小时。然后将药物或不含药物的载体静脉注射到相应的组中。再灌注 24 小时后，通过三苯基四唑氯化物 (TTC) 染色评估梗死体积。评估神经功能恢复和中风后癫痫。Nissl 和苏木精-伊红 (H&E) 染色用于组织学观察。我们研究了 α-细辛醇对中风的保护机制。结果表明，α-细辛醚具有良好的神经保护作用，表现为减少梗死体积和脑卒中后癫痫，改善神经功能。组织学和流式细胞术分析表明，α-细辛酮治疗减轻了细胞损伤和细胞凋亡体内和体外。此外，α-细辛酮降低了 GFAP、Iba-1 和 LC3II/LC3I 的表达并增加了 p62 的表达。这些结果表明，α-细辛酮通过改善神经胶质激活和自噬来减轻 CIR 中风损伤。