Elmira Shiri - PhD student in animal physiology, Department of Biology, Science and Research Branch, Islamic Azad University, Tehran, Iran.
Akram Eidi - Professor, Department of Biology, Science and Research Branch, Islamic Azad University, Tehran, Iran.
Mohammad Reza Bigdeli - Associate Professor, Department of Animal Sciences and Marine Biology, Shahid Beheshti University, Tehran, Iran.
Seyed Pejman Mortazavi - Associate Professor, Department of Veterinary, Science and Research Branch, Islamic Azad University, Tehran, Iran.

Cerebral ischemia is one reason for death and loss of movement ability of people, which imposes a large and significant cost on the global health system. Niosomes, as useful tools, can increase drug delivery to the brain. The purpose of this research is to investigate the effect of niosomes containing saponin (NS) on stroke- induced damage in the hippocampus of an animal model. The physicochemical characteristics of nanocarriers, such as zeta potential, size, and release test were investigated after the fabrication of thin film method. In this study, Wistar rats were divided into five experimental groups including sham group, stroke group, stroke group with empty niosome injection, stroke group with saponin injection, and stroke group with niosome saponin injection. The study examined various aspects of ischemia including stroke volume, blood-brain barrier (BBB) damage, neurological defects, levels of inflammatory cytokines, and cellular damage in the hippocampus. The findings indicate that NS, with a size of ۸۵.۹۲nm, zeta potential of -۳۴.۷ mv, and an entrapment efficiency (EE%) of  ۸۵.۷۰% effectively reduced stroke volume, cerebral edema, BBB damage, expression level of TNF-α, and NF-kB genes and inflammation in hippocampal cells. Additionally, NS improved sensory and motor performance in rats. These results demonstrate that NS can mitigate stroke-induced damage in the hippocampus of the rat model by effectively crossing the BBB.

Hippocampus, Niosome, Neurological Deficits, Saponin, Stroke