Effect of Curcumin and Physical Training on the Brain and Motor Performance of Rats with Cerebral Ischemia

Brain ischemia is the second most deadly disease in the world and it has already been proven that mild and moderate physical exercises minimize the deleterious effects of this disease on the brain. Curcumin has also been considered a neuroprotective substance. Therefore, the goal of this study was to evaluate the effects of high-resistance training and curcumin on the brain and motor performance of rats with cerebral ischemia using a model of bilateral common carotid artery occlusion. Functional tests were performed to analyze rats' motor performance, namely parallel bar test and misstep test. For nerve tissue analysis, Nissl staining and neuronal counting were performed in the cerebral cortex, striatum and hippocampus of the brains. Two protocols of high-intensity physical training were performed for six weeks, five days a week, from 20 to 40 min. The results demonstrated that there were significant differences in the parallel bar test and misstep test regarding the number of errors committed by the trained animals in comparison to the sedentary ones and the group that received curcumin. With respect to the number of neurons in the cortex and striatum, a lower neuronal density was observed in the trained animals. Thus, the animals of the sedentary group and the group that received curcumin exhibited better motor performance and higher neuronal density in the areas assessed, demonstrating that high-intensity physical exercise increased brain injury and worsened animals' motor performance.