Cerebral ischemia is a serious neurological disorder that can lead to high morbidity and mortality. Baicalin is a naturally bioactive flavonoid derived from Scutellaria baicalensis Georgi, which has neuroprotective activity. Baicalin exerts a neuroprotective effect against hypoxic ischemic injury. In this study, we investigated whether baicalin regulates specific proteins in the cerebral cortex of ischemic stroke animals. Middle cerebral artery occlusion (MCAO) surgery was performed to induce ischemic brain injury, and baicalin (30 mg/kg) or vehicle was injected into the abdominal cavity before MCAO surgery. Neurological behavior tests were performed 24 h after MCAO surgery and proteomics approach was performed using proteins extracted from cortical tissue. Two-dimensional electrophoresis analysis and MALDI-TOF were performed to identify the regulated protein by baicalin. MCAO damage caused severe behavioral disorders, but baicalin treatment improved these behavioral deficits. Baicalin also induced changes in the expression of various proteins in the cerebral cortex of MCAO animals. Proteins changed by baicalin administration are as follow: adenosylhomocysteinase, isocitrate dehydrogenase [NAD] subunit alpha, apolipoprotein A-I, Rab GDP dissociation inhibitor beta, eukaryotic initiation factor 4A, and mu-crystallin. These proteins were involved in metabolism and protein synthesis. The results of this study demonstrated the neuroprotective effects of baicalin by improving behavioral disorders caused by MCAO damage. The results also showed that baicalin regulates the expression of a variety of proteins involved in neuroprotective functions. Therefore, our findings provide evidence that baicalin plays a neuroprotective role in stroke animal models by regulating specific proteins.

서 론
재료 및 방법
    실험동물 및 약물 치료
    중간대뇌동맥 폐색술 (middle cerebral artery occlusion)
    신경학적 결손 점수 검사 (neurological deficit score test)
    코너 검사 (corner test)
    2차원 겔 전기영동 (Two dimensional electrophoresis)
    통계 분석
결 과
    MCAO 손상시 바이칼린의 신경 행동 장애 개선
    MCAO 손상시 바이칼린 투여에 의해 조절되는 단백질탐색
고 찰
감사의 글
REFERENCES

• Hyun-Kyoung Son(Department of Veterinary Anatomy and Histology, College of Veterinary Medicine, Research Institute of Life Science, Gyeongsang National University, Korea)
• Phil-Ok Koh(Department of Veterinary Anatomy and Histology, College of Veterinary Medicine, Research Institute of Life Science, Gyeongsang National University, Korea) Corresponding author