The pathogenesis of vascular dementia induced by chronic cerebral ischemia is complex, mainly consisting of energy metabolism disorder, oxidative stress injury, neuronal apoptotic cell death and cholinergic nerve dysfunction.
There is evidence that 3-n-butylphthalide can effectively antagonize acute ischemic stroke. However, the effect of 3-n-butylphthalide on chronic ischemic stroke remains unclear.
Dr. Wanhong Zhao and her team, Institute of Basic Medical Sciences, Hubei University of Medicine, China performed a study and found that 3-n-butylphthalide improved neuronal morphology in cerebral cortex and hippocampus, alleviated oxidative stress caused by chronic cerebral ischemia, improved cholinergic function, and inhibited amyloid beta accumulation in rats subjected to chronic cerebral ischemia.
Their findings were published in Neural Regeneration Research (Vol. 9, No. 7, 2014).
Article
"3-N-butylphthalide improves neuronal morphology after chronic cerebral ischemia" by Wanhong Zhao, Chao Luo, Jue Wang, Jian Gong, Bin Li, Yingxia Gong, Jun Wang, Hanqin Wang (Institute of Basic Medical Sciences, Hubei University of Medicine, Shiyan, Hubei Province, China)
Zhao WH, Luo C, Wang J, Gong J, Li B, Gong YX, Wang J, Wang HQ. 3-N-butylphthalide improves neuronal morphology after chronic cerebral ischemia. Neural Regen Res. 2014;9(7):719-726.