protective effect of gum arabic on spinal cord ischemia-reperfusion injury in rats

Background: gum arabic (ga) contains anti-oxidant and anti-inflammatory compounds and protects tissues.objectives: the purpose of the present study was to investigate the protective effect of ga on the spinal cord’s motor neurons after ischemia-reperfusion (i-r) injury.materials & methods: thirty-five male rats (sprague-dawley) were randomly divided into five groups: intact, sham surgery, control (4 ml/kg distilled water+i/r), low-dose gum arabic (ga 1 g/kg+i-r), and high-dose gum arabic (ga 4 g/kg+i-r). in the experimental groups, oral gavages’ treatment was performed for 21 days before surgery. three days after i-r, the rats were evaluated for neurological function, biochemical, and histological analysis.results: the mean motor deficit index (mdi) in the ga groups versus the control group was significantly lower (p<0.01). about 72 hours after i-r, the mean plasma level of superoxide dismutase and total anti-oxidant capacity in the ga 4 g/kg group were higher than the control group (p<0.05). however, there was no significant difference in the plasma level of catalase between the ga 4 g/kg and the control groups (p<0.05). approximately 67% of the motor neurons were destroyed in the control group, while this ratio was about 18% in the ga 4 g/kg group.conclusion: this study showed that ga (4 g/kg) protects the motor neurons of the spinal cord against ischemia-reperfusion injury.