[Potential antiviral drug Pueraria crude extract and puerarin protect against ethanol-induced cytotoxicity in embryonic mouse hippocampal cultures].

OBJECTIVE: To examine whether Chinese medical herb Pueraria crude extract (CP) and standard of pure puerarin (SP) possess the same neuroprotective effects during concomitant ethanol (EtOH) treatment. METHODS: Hippocampus cultures were prepared from mice at gestational age of 18 day. Cell viability was measured by MTT assay. RT-PCR was employed to determine mRNA expression of superoxide dismutase (SOD). RESULTS: As measured by MTT assay, supplementation with 15 mg/L CP or 10 mg/L SP afforded neuroprotection against all EtOH concentrations (50, 200 and 350 mmol/L, respectively) in embryonic hippocampal culture system. In addition, both 15 mg/L CP and 10 mg/L SP could decrease expression of SOD at mRNA level. CONCLUSION: This study suggests that CP and SP could decrease oxidative stress induced by ethanol treatment by the decreased expression of SOD at mRNA level, and demonstrates antioxidative neuroprotective effect of CP and SP against developmental ethanol exposure in vitro.