ABSTRACT
Agmatine, a widely distributed molecule in mammalian tissues, shows neuroprotective effects in brain ischemia. We describe the neuroprotective effects of agmatine in the mouse MCAO model and the quantitative change of agmatine in ischemic injury. Brain ischemic injured mice were injected with agmatine (100 mg/kg of mouse, IP). Agmatine significantly reduced the infarct area after MCAO. Despite the similar patterns of agmatine change observed in control or agmatine injected animals, the agmatine levels of the penumbra were significantly higher than those of the striatum and the cerebral cortex during the early period (<1 hour after 2 hours of MCA occlusion). This suggests that the early period, during which agmatine levels increase in the brain, is the crucial period in terms of neuroprotective effect during ischemia.