Escin attenuates cerebral edema induced by acute omethoate poisoning.

Organophosphorus exposure affects different organs such as skeletal muscles, the gastrointestinal tract, liver, lung, and brain. The present experiment aimed to evaluate the effect of escin on cerebral edema induced by acute omethoate poisoning. Sprague-Dawley rats were administered subcutaneously with omethoate at a single dose of 60 mg/kg followed by escin treatment. The results showed that escin reduced the brain water content and the amount of Evans blue in omethoate-poisoned animals. Treatment with escin decreased the levels of tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-αα), matrix metalloproteinase-9 (MMP-9), cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2), and prostaglandin E2 (PGE2) in the brain. Escin also alleviated the histopathological change induced by acute omethoate poisoning. The findings demonstrated that escin can attenuate cerebral edema induced by acute omethoate poisoning, and the underlying mechanism was associated with ameliorating the permeability of the blood--brain barrier. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]