Table.
Effects produced by immunosuppressive agents in experimental models of ischaemic stroke
| Immunosuppressive drugs investigated | Experimental model | Effect produced | References |
|---|---|---|---|
| Steroids (Cortisol, corticosterone & dexamethasone) Dexamethasone | Isolated glial cells | Inhibition proliferation and activity of iNOS. | Chao et al, 199269; Drew & Chavis, 200070; |
| Inhibition of release of TNF- α and IL-6. | Jacobsson et al, 200671 | ||
| Suppression of production of MCP-1. | |||
| Permanent middle cerebral artery occlusion model in rats. | Reduction in expression of TNF- α. | Bertorelli et al, 199872 | |
| Permanent middle cerebral artery occlusion model in cats. | Beneficial effect on cerebral oedema. | Fenske et al, 197973 | |
| Occlusion of middle cerebral arteries in hyperglycaemic cat. | Reduce size of infarcts. | de Courten-Myers, 199474 | |
| Cyclosporine A | Rat neuronal cells. | Inhibit caspase activation. | Capano et al, 20029 |
| Human neuroblastoma cells. | Prevents apoptosis and enhance neurite outgrowth. | Sheehan et al, 200684 | |
| Transient forebrain ischaemia in rats. | Reduced brain oedema and infarct size. | Shiga et al, 199285 | |
| Hippocampal CA1 neurons. | Improvement in survival. | Uchino et al, 199586; Miyata et al, 200187 | |
| Global ischaemia rat model. | Inhibit activation of microglia cells secreted proinflammatory substances. | Wakita et al, 199588 | |
| Tacrolimus, FK506 | Cortical cell against excitotoxic neuronal death. | Prevents dephosphorylation of nitric oxide synthase. | Dawson et al, 199392 |
| Rodent model of focal ischaemia. | Neuroprotective effect. | Sharkey and Butcher, 199411 | |
| Transient global ischaemia model in gerbils. | Reduce delayed neuronal death mediated by inhibition of neuronal nitric oxide synthase. | Tokime et al, 199694 | |
| Primate model of cerebral ischaemia. | Improved neurological functions. | Furuichi et al, 200695 | |
| Rapamycin | Microglial cells. | Inhibits expression of inducible nitric oxide synthase. | Lu et al, 2006100 |
| Traumatic injury model in mice. | Improved the functional recovery. | Erlich et al, 2007101 | |
| Mycophenolate Mofetil | Organotypic hippocampal slice cultures. | Attenuated neuronal damage induced by excitotoxic injury. | Dehghani et al, 2003104 |
| Mice model of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. | Reduced microglial activation, improved stem cell survival and delayed the onset of neurological symptoms. | Yan et al, 2006106 | |
| Minocycline | Mixed SC and pure microglia cultures. | Inhibition of NMDA activated p38 MAPK, No and IL- 1β release. | Tikka et al, 2001112 |
| Global ischaemia in gerbils. | Inhibition of microglial cells. | Yrjanheikki et al, 199812 | |
| Focal ischaemia in rats. | Reduced infarct volume & Inhibition of microglial cells. | Yrjanheikki et al, 199913 |
iNOS, inducible nitric oxide synthase; TNF- α, tumor necrosis factor-alpha; IL-6, interleukin- 1; MCP-1, monocyte chemoattractant protein-1; NMDA, N-methyl-D-aspartate; p38 MAPK, p38 mitogen-activated protein kinase; NO, nitric oxide