Effect of mild hypothermia on angiogenesis in rats with focal cerebral ischemia

In the present study, we investigated the effect of mild hypothermia on infarct volume, angiogenesis and brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) level after stroke. After permanent middle cerebral artery occlusion, mild hypothermia was induced immediately and maintained for 24 h. 2,3,5-Triphenyltetrazolium chloride (TTC) staining, laser scanning confocal microscopy (LSCM) and ELISA were performed to assay infarct volume, angiogenesis and BDNF level in the ischemic boundary zone (IBZ), respectively. Compared with normothermic group, mild hypothermia reduced total infarct volume and increased endogenous BDNF level. And the microvessel diameter, the number of vascular branch points and the vessel surface area were significantly increased in the mild hypothermia group. These findings suggest that mild hypothermia enhances angiogenesis in ischemic brain, which might be enhanced in part via BDNF.