Intranasal VEGF - A and VEGF - E in a modified Levine model of stroke

This thesis might not have produced positive results but it did advance the knowledge out there. Something we badly need in order to come up with more hypotheses.

Intranasal VEGF - A and VEGF - E in a modified Levine model of stroke

 

Intranasal

VEGF

-

A and VEGF

-

E in a modified Levine

model of stroke

Jon

athan

Robert Osborne

A thesis submitted for the degree of

Master of Science

at the University of Otago,

Dunedin,

New Zealand

Abstract

VEGF(Vascular endothelial growth factor)-A has been shown to successfully enter the brain via the intranasal pathway and improve symptoms following focal ischemia in rats. However VEGF-A promotes inflammation and vascular permeability which are believed to contribute

to the damage following stroke.

VEGF-E has been shown to produce reduced inflammation

and vascular permeability while still stimulating similar levels of angiogenesis. We aimed to compare intranasal VEGF-A and VEGF-E doses in a modified Levine model of stroke.

VEGF was delivered on days 3, 4 & 5 following hypoxic ischemia.

Infarct was measured on day 14 using cresyl violet stain. Behavioural assessments were performed before hypoxic ischemia and on day 1, 7 and 14.  We found that VEGF-A and VEGF-E did not affect behavioural scores or infarct volume.

However, VEGF-E (20μg) reduced weight loss at day 14 after stroke.

These findings suggest that intranasal VEGF-A and VEGF–E are not effective in the modified Levine model used in this study