Vitamin E May Protect Brain After Stroke

Stroke occurs when the blood supply to part of the brain is suddenly interrupted or when a blood vessel in the brain bursts, resulting in death of brain cells as a result of being deprived of oxygen and nutrients from the interrupted blood flow.  Chandan Sen, from Ohio State University (USA), and colleagues studied the various forms of natural Vitamin E, finding that low doses of one of the eight types, alpha tocotrienol, exerted a protective role.  Alpha tocogrienol inhibited the action of the enzyme called cystolic calcium-dependent phospholipase A2 (cPLA2).  As an excessive amount of the neurotransmitter glutamate is released in the brain following the trauma of blocked blood flow associated with a stroke, cPLA2 released arachidonic acid into the brain, which subsequently underwent an enzymatic chemical reaction to become toxic.  By introducing alpha tocotrienol to the glutamate-flooded cells, the researchers slashed the levels of the toxic acid compound by 60%, equating to a four-fold enhanced cell survival rate