Neuroprotective effects of thymoquinone against MDMA-induced neurotoxicity

• Published in: Research journal of pharmacy and technology 2021-11, Vol.14 (11), p.5945-5952
• Main Authors: NS, Mustafa, N., Mohamad, Bakar NH, Abu, Adnan LH, Mohd, R., Jeharsae, M., Talek, NFA, Md. Fauzi, NZ, Ahmad
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Amphetamines; Brain; Ecstasy; Gene expression; Neurotoxicity; Substance abuse treatment
• ISSN: 0974-3618; 0974-360X; 0974-306X
• DOI: 10.52711/0974-360X.2021.01033

MDMA (3, 4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine) is a psychoactive substance that is associated with neurotoxicity. MDMA exposure to human results in the degeneration of neuronal cells in the hippocampus. Hence, the purpose of this study was to examine the potential of a natural compound known as thymoquinone (TQ) to protect against neuronal damage and memory impairment in rats stimulated by MDMA. The administration of TQ into MDMA-induced neuronal damage rats was carried out in male Sprague Dawley via a 1-week treatment dividing into four groups (n=36, 7-9 per group). The studied groups involved with the treatments comprise i) Control (1 mL/kg saline), ii) MDMA (10 mg/kg MDMA), iii) MDMA+TQ (10 mg/kg MDMA + 40 mg/kg TQ) and iv) TQ control (40 mg/kg TQ). A novel object recognition test (NORT) was carried out to evaluate the memory performance of the rats, followed by a histopathological assessment of the hippocampal dentate gyrus. The histopathology analysis revealed a significant increase in numbers of positive cells by Fluoro-Jade C following the effect of MDMA on neuronal damage (MDMA induced group) compared to control (P