The influence of
noopept (N-phenylacetyl-L-prolylglycine ethyl ester, GVS-111) on the extent of ischemic cortical
stroke was investigated in experiments on white mongrel male rats with
ischemia induced by a combination of the
middle cerebral artery occlusion with ipsilateral common carotid artery
ligation. Animals were treated with
noopept (0.5 mg/kg, i.p.) according to the following schedule: 15 min and 2, 24, and 48 h after the occlusion. Test rats were decapitated 72 h after occlusion, brains were extracted and frozen, and thin brain slices were stained with
2,3,5-triphenyltetrazolium chloride. The slices were scanned and processed using Auc 1 computer program, which estimates the percentage of damaged area relative to that of the whole ipsilateral hemisphere. The conditions of coagulation the distal segment of middle cerebral artery were selected, which caused
necrosis localized in the fronto-parietal and dorso-lateral regions of the brain cortex without any damage of subcortical structures. The extent of the brain damage in control group (treated by saline) was 18.6%, while that in the group treated with
noopept was 12.2%, thus demonstrating a decrease in the
infarction area by 34.5% (p < 05). The data on
noopept efficacy on the model of the extensive ischemic injury of brain cortex show that this
drug has good prospects for use in the neuroprotective treatment of
stroke.