Abstract: AimTo investigate the protective effects of sodium β-aescin on cerebral ischemia-reperfusion injury in rats. MethodsRats were pretreated with sodium β-aesein for 7 d and then subjected to cerebral ischemia-reperfusion injury induced by a middle cerebral artery occlusion (MCAO). The neurological outcome was evaluated by the Longa′s method; The infarct volume was assessed by hemmatoxylin-Eosin staining and the cerebral water content was measured by dry weight method. The activities of SOD, GSH-Px, CAT, Na₊-K₊-ATPase and the MDA content were measured in the cortex and hippocampus of ischemic and non-ischemic hemisphere. ResultsSodium β-aescin significantly reduced the volume of cerebral infarct and water content, and ameliorated the neurological deficit (P<0.05). In vehicle-treated rats, the activities of SOD, GSH-Px and Na₊-K₊-ATPase in the cortex and hippocampus of ischemic hemisphere were all decreased (P<0.01), while the CAT activity was slightly elevated and the MDA of content was significantly increased (P<0.01) compared with the sham-operated group. After treated with sodium β-aescin, the effects on recovery of SOD, GSH-Px, Na₊-K₊-ATPase activities were observed (P<0.05), and the MDA content was reduced (P<0.05). ConclusionThese results showed that pretreatment with sodium β-aescin can attenuate brain injury and its antioxidant activity on rats which encountered cerebral ischemia-reperfusion.