Effect of atorvastatin on expression of TLR4 and NF-κB in stroke rats and its protective effect on brain.

OBJECTIVE This study aimed at investigating the effect of atorvastatin on the expression of TLR4 and NF-κB in brain tissue of stroke rats and its protective effect on brain. MATERIALS AND METHODS Sixty SD rats were selected. The control group (n=20) was raised without treatment. MCAO was used in the experimental group (n=20) and model group (n=20) for stroke modeling. The experimental group was treated with atorvastatin intragastric administration, while the model group received no treatment. The blood lipid level was detected by a full-automatic biochemical analyzer. The expression levels of TLR4 and NF-κB proteins were detected by Western-Blot (WB), and the mRNA expression of NF-κB and TLR4 in brain tissues was detected by real-time quantitative fluorescence (qtPCR). The neurological deficit score was performed. RESULTS TC, TG, LDL-C in blood lipid indexes of the experimental group and the model group were remarkably higher than those of control group, while HDL-C was remarkably lower than that of control group (p<0.05). After treatment, TC, TG, LDL-C in the experimental group gradually decreased, while HDL-C concentration gradually increased (p<0.05). The expression of TLR4 and NF-κB protein in the experimental group was significantly lower than that in the model group (p<0.01) but significantly higher than that in the control group (p< 0.01). The expression of TLR4 and NF-κB mRAN in the experimental group was also considerably lower than that in the model group (p<0.01) but higher than that in the control group (p<0.01). After atorvastatin treatment, the neurological deficit score of the experimental group was remarkably lower than that of the model group (p<0.001). CONCLUSIONS Atorvastatin can effectively reduce the expression of TLR4 and NF-κB in brain tissue of stroke rats, and has a certain protective effect on cerebral nerve function, which is expected to be the first choice for stroke treatment in the future.