Glioprotective Effects of Ashwagandha Leaf Extract against Lead Induced Toxicity

Abstract

Withania somnifera (Ashwagandha), also known as Indian Ginseng, is a well-known Indian medicinal plant due to its antioxidative, antistress, antigenotoxic, and immunomodulatory properties. The present study was designed to assess and establish the cytoprotective potential of Ashwagandha leaf aqueous extract against lead induced toxicity. Pretreatment of C6 cells with 0.1% Ashwagandha extract showed cytoprotection against 25 μM to 400 μM concentration of lead nitrate. Further pretreatment with Ashwagandha extract to lead nitrate exposed cells (200 μM) resulted in normalization of glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP) expression as well as heat shock protein (HSP70), mortalin, and neural cell adhesion molecule (NCAM) expression. Further, the cytoprotective efficacy of Ashwagandha extract was studied in vivo. Administration of Ashwagandha extract provided significant protection to lead induced altered antioxidant defense that may significantly compromise normal cellular function. Ashwagandha also provided a significant protection to lipid peroxidation (LPx) levels, catalase, and superoxide dismutase (SOD) but not reduced glutathione (GSH) contents in brain tissue as well as peripheral organs, liver and kidney, suggesting its ability to act as a free radical scavenger protecting cells against toxic insult. These results, thus, suggest that Ashwagandha water extract may have the potential therapeutic implication against lead poisoning.

Lead induces inflammation and neurodegenerative changes in the rat medial prefrontal cortex

“…In a previous study, increase in the expression level of GFAP in brain regions following PbNO3 treatment was documented. [38] The astrocytic cell count was augmented following PbNO3 treatment suggesting that increased GFAP immunoreactivity can be an indication of the formation of gliosis as one of the mechanisms by which Pb induces its adverse effects on the CNS. In the CNS, astrocytes are abundant cells that provide support for neurons, contribute to the formation and function of synapses, thin-out synapses by phagocytosis, and participate in a wide range of homeostatic functions.…”

Withania somnifera Suppresses Tumor Growth of Intracranial Allograft of Glioma Cells

“…A dose well below the higher limits of ashwagandha extract dose (140 mg/kg, i.e., 4 mL ASH-WEX/kg bw) was selected for the in vivo study so that the volume of extract could be efficiently administered orally to animals. Also, this dose has been shown to be safe and effective in our earlier studies [9]. The formulations were administered by oral gavage for 21 consecutive days.…”

“…The drug has been positively Electronic supplementary material The online version of this article (doi:10.1007/s12035-015-9320-1) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users. tested for adaptogenic, anti-tumor, and radiosensitizing activity [6], and memory enhancer, anti-aging, antistress, immunomodulatory, neuroprotective, and antioxidant properties [7][8][9]. Ashwagandha, however, is often underutilized in the oncology arena, despite the fact that it shows direct anti-tumor and cancer preventive activity.…”

Identification of valid endogenous control genes for determining gene expression in C6 glioma cell line treated with conditioned medium from adipose-derived stem cell

“…One study used cyclophilin A (CyPA), two studies used 18S rRNA, one study used U6 small nuclear ribonucleic acid (snRNA) and one another study used the mean of peptidylprolylisomerase A (PpiA) and 18S rRNA as reference gene. SYBR 1 Green, a fluorescent binding dye, was the most frequently used (68.96%), while three studies used TaqMan [53] Relative standard curve GAPDH SYBR Kumar P.; 2014 [54] ND ACTB ND kwon M.S. ; 2014 [55] ND GAPDH SYBR Yu Z.Q.…”