The Effect of Erythropoietin on the Development of Reactive Gliosis within the Striatum in an Animal Model of Huntington´s Disease - a Pilot Study
Abstract
The aim of this pilot study in an animal model of HD was to define the effect of EPO on a development of the neurodegenerative process in the striatum, i.e. on a chronic pathological process within the brain: (a) in the acute phase of this process (7 days after application of the neurotoxic quolinic acid - QA), (b) in the phase of fully developed striatal lesion when the neurodegenerative process extends already very slowly - similarly to HD patients (28 days after QA lesion). Short-time application of high dose of EPO (3000 IU/kg daily for 6 days) in an early phase of the lesion mitigated the development of acute striatal damage, whereas in a subchronic phase of the process EPO induced reactivation of astrocytes (likely they are in majority GFAP-negative) within the lesion.