A Single Immediate Use of the Cathodal Transcranial Direct Current Stimulation Induces Neuroprotection of Hippocampal Region Against Global Cerebral Ischemia

Objectives: Global cerebral ischemia (CI) causes severe neuronal injury, mainly in the hippocampal CA1 region. This study aimed to investigate an immediate using transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) in reducing neuronal injury induced by CI. Materials and methods: The 32 Wistar male rats were randomly divided into four groups (n=8 per group). In the ischemia group (I), CI was induced via the 4 vessel occlusion model. In the sham group (Sh), rats did not receive any intervention. In the ischemia+cathodal group (I+c/tDCS), the cathodal current was applied during CI. In the ischemia+anodal group (I+a/tDCS), the anodal current was applied. The current intensity of 400 mA was applied for 15-min during the ischemia. Hippocampal tissue was used to assess levels of NMDAR, IL-1b, TNF-a, MDA, SOD, NOS, and apoptosis markers. Histological assessment and TUNEL staining were performed in CA1 hippocampal region. Results: The c/tDCS signifi-cantly decreased the levels of IL-1b and TNF-a than the I and a/tDCS groups. The c/tDCS significantly reduced MDA and NOS levels, while increasing the level of SOD than the I and a/tDCS. The c/tDCS caused a significant decrease in NMDAR level than the a/tDCS. Using c/tDCS significantly reduced the Bax and Caspase-3 expressions, while increasing the Bcl-2 expression than the I group. In the c/tDCS group, DNA fragmentation and neuronal death were significantly lower than the I and a/tDCS groups. Conclusion: Using cathodal a direct current could attenuate primary pathophysiological pathways induced by CI, and it eventually reduced neurons death and apoptosis in the CA1 hippocampal region.