LIPID-PEROXIDATION AND SURVIVAL IN RATS FOLLOWING CEREBRAL POSTISCHEMIC REPERFUSION - EFFECT OF DRUGS WITH DIFFERENT MOLECULAR MECHANISMS

In the present study the authors investigated the effect of pretreatme nt with exogenous antioxidants such as deferoxamine (iron chelating dr ug), allopurinol (competitive inhibitor of xanthine oxidase) and vitam in E (scavenger of oxygen free radicals) on lipid peroxidation in rat cerebral cortex after post-ischaemic reperfusion, and on the survival rate. The effect of pretreatment with two calcium-antagonist drugs (di ltiazem and verapamil) was also evaluated under the same experimental conditions. Pretreatment with exogenous antioxidants and with calcium- antagonist drugs significantly decreased cerebral conjugated diene lev els (index of lipoperoxidation) with a concomitant increase in surviva l with respect to untreated ischaemic rats.