This study was conducted to study lycopene efficacy in brain-behavior, pro-inflammatory and apoptotic markers, and antioxidant levels in a rodent model. Rats were administered with propionic acid (PPA) (500 mg/kg BW) to induce autism-like disorders, then treated with different lycopene (L) concentrations (5, 10, 20 mg kg⁻¹ day⁻¹) for 35 days. The groups were: (i);control, (ii);PPA, (iii);PPA + L5, (iv);PPA + L10, and (v);PPA + L20. In this study, serum and brain malondialdehyde (MDA) levels decreased with lycopene supplements compared to the PPA group, similarly to the brain levels of inflammatory factors (IL-1α, IL-8, NF-κB, TNF-α; p < .05). Besides, brain levels of anti-apoptotic Bcl-2 decreased, whereas pro-apoptotic Bax, antioxidant Nrf2, and HO-1 levels in brain increased compared with PPA (p < .05). This study showed that lycopene might have therapeutic value to improve the dysfunctions in learning and memory in a dose-dependent way, along with the antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, and antiapoptotic molecular responses in a rat model of ASD-like disorders.

中文翻译：

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番茄红素通过抑制大鼠炎症和氧化应激改善丙酸诱导的自闭症谱系障碍

本研究旨在研究番茄红素在啮齿动物模型中对大脑行为、促炎和凋亡标志物以及抗氧化水平的功效。给大鼠施用丙酸（PPA）（500mg/kg BW）以诱发自闭症样障碍，然后用不同的番茄红素（L）浓度（5、10、20mg kg ^-1 天^-1）治疗35天。这些组是：(i)；对照，(ii)；PPA，(iii)；PPA+L5，(iv)；PPA+L10，和(v)；PPA+L20。在这项研究中，与 PPA 组相比，番茄红素补充剂后血清和脑中丙二醛 (MDA) 水平降低，类似于炎症因子（IL-1α、IL-8、NF-κB、TNF-α；p < .05）。此外，与 PPA 相比，大脑中抗凋亡 Bcl-2 的水平降低，而大脑中促凋亡 Bax、抗氧化剂 Nrf2 和 HO-1 的水平增加（p  < .05）。这项研究表明，番茄红素可能具有治疗价值，以剂量依赖性方式改善学习和记忆功能障碍，以及 ASD 样疾病大鼠模型中的抗氧化、抗炎和抗凋亡分子反应。