Abstract
Aim and objective: Hippophae rhamnoides is an edible, nutrient rich plant found in the
northern regions of India. It belongs to the family Elaeagnaceae and is well known for its traditional
pharmacological activities. The present study was aimed to investigate the antioxidant and neuroprotective
activities of H. rhamnoides.
Methodology: The hydroalcoholic extract of H. rhamnoides was evaluated for free radical scavenging
activity using DPPH, hydroxyl radical scavenging and ferric thiocyanate assays. In vitro neuroprotective
activity was assessed on human neuroblastoma cell line-IMR32 against hydrogen
peroxide (H2O2) induced cytotoxicity. The neuroprotective effect was determined by measuring
the cell viability through tetrazolium dye MTT (3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium
bromide) reducing assay and propidium iodide (PI) staining. Also the intracellular reactive
oxygen species (ROS) activity was assessed using dichloro-dihydro-fluorescein diacetate (DCFDA)
assay by flowcytometer.
Results: The results of the study demonstrated that H. rhamnoides extract possesses potential
free radical scavenging activity. The IC50 value for DPPH and OH radical scavenging assay was
70.92 lg/ml and 0.463 mg/ml, also the extract was also found to have considerable level of lipid peroxidation
activity. The neuroprotective effect of H. rhamnoides was confirmed by its cell viability
enhancing capacity against hydrogen peroxide induced cell cytotoxicity. The extract acted on
IMR32 cells in a dose dependent manner as observed through PI and MTT assays. The percentage
intracellular ROS activity was reduced by 60–70% in treated cells compared to H2O2 control.