Objectives:
Intracerebral hemorrhage (ICH) is a devastating type of
strokes that carries high mortality rates, but effective therapeutic options are still lacking. Here, the adult rat model of ICH was used to investigate the efficacy of a combinational
therapy of
deferoxamine (DFX) and
minocycline.Methods: The ICH was induced by stereotaxic infusion of
collagenase into striatum of adult rats. After the induction of ICH, rats were treated with
intraperitoneal injection of
deferoxamine (50 mg/kg),
minocycline (45 mg/kg), or both agents, at 2 hours after ICH and then every 12 hours for up to 3 days. The vehicle group were treated with
phosphate-buffered saline (PBS) only. Rats were killed at 1, 2, and 3 day(s) for examination of
iron deposition, neuronal death, neurological deficits, the area of brain damage, activation of microglia/macrophages.Results: Our data revealed that the systemic administration of DFX and/or
minocycline decreased
iron accumulation. And immunofluorescence staining results indicated that drug-treated group significantly decreased the neuronal degeneration, the number of activated microglia/macrophages and the amount of cell death after ICH. In addition, neurological deficits caused by ICH were improved in the presence of DFX and/or
minocycline compare with vehicle group. Furthermore, the combination treatment showed better effects in neuroprotection and anti-
inflammation when compared to the monotherapy groups.Conclusions: The combination
therapy significantly reduces the number of neuronal deaths, suppresses of the activation of microglia/macrophages, decreases
iron accumulation in the area around the
hematoma, lessening the brain damage area, and improving neurological deficits in ICH.