?-Hydroxybutyrate (GHB), ?-Butyrolactone (GBL), and 1,4-Butanediol (1,4-BD) Reduce the Volume of Cerebral Infarction in Rodent Transient Middle Cerebral Artery Occlusion
?-Hydroxybutyric acid (GHB), an endogenous organic acid catabolite of ?-aminobutyric acid (GABA), has been shown to have tissue-protective effects in various organs, including the brain. We examined the potential neuroprotective effect of GHB and its chemical precursors, ?-butyrolactone (GBL) and 1,4-butanediol (1,4-BD), in the rodent ischemic stroke model by intraluminal filament middle cerebral artery occlusion (MCAO). Adult male Sprague-Dawley rats underwent transient left-sided MCAO and received intraperitoneal treatment with 300 mg/kg of GHB, GBL, 1,4-BD, or control vehicle given at 30 min before, as well as 180 and 360 min after the onset of ischemia. Infarct volumes were determined 24 h after MCAO. In transient MCAO, the mean volume of infarction for control rats was 464.4  17.9 cu.mm versus 273.6  53.1, 233.3  44.7, and 275.4  39.9 cu.mm for rats treated with 1,4-BD (P < 0.05), GBL (P < 0.05), and GHB (P < 0.05), respectively. We conclude that GHB, GBL, and 1,4-BD protect against rat focal cerebral ischemia from transient MCAO
?-butyrolactone (gbl) ?-hydroxybutyric acid (ghb) stroke middle cerebral artery occlusion (mcao) 1 4-butanediol (1 4-bd) transient focal cerebral ischemia