AccScience Publishing / AN / Online First / DOI: 10.36922/an.8347
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ORIGINAL RESEARCH ARTICLE

The role of high-density lipoprotein and Vitamin D in exercise-induced neuroprotection in epileptic rats

Gelareh Vahhabzadeh1 ,  Asal Salimi2 ,  Taha Ghantabpour3 ,  Ali Mohammadkhanizadeh4 ,  Maryam Jafarian5 ,  Nooshin Ahmadirad2 ,  Fariba Karimzadeh2*
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1 Razi Drug Research Center, School of Medicine, Iran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran
2 Cellular and Molecular Research Center, Iran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran
3 Cellular and Molecular Research Center, Research Institute for prevention of Non-Communicable Diseases and Department of Anatomical Sciences, School of Medicine, Qazvin University of Medical Sciences, Qazvin, Iran
4 Department of Physiology, School of Medicine, Iran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran
5 Brain and Spinal Cord Lesions Research Center, Neuroscience Research Institute, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran
Advanced Neurology, 8347 https://doi.org/10.36922/an.8347
Received: 31 December 2024 | Revised: 16 May 2025 | Accepted: 19 May 2025 | Published online: 11 June 2025
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in the pathogenesis, diagnosis and treatment of epilepsy)
© 2025 by the Author(s). This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License ( https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ )
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Abstract

Previous studies have reported the neuroprotective effects of exercise in epilepsy. Hence, this study aimed to investigate the potential mechanisms underlying these neuroprotective effects by examining changes in high-density lipoprotein (HDL), low-density lipoprotein (LDL), and Vitamin D levels. Wistar rats were divided into four groups: sham, pentylenetetrazole (PTZ), exercise (EX), and PTZ + EX. Seizures were induced in the PTZ and PTZ + EX groups through intraperitoneal administration of PTZ (35 mg/kg) every other day for 1 month. The EX and PTZ + EX groups underwent daily exercise sessions (30 min/session) for 1 month. Serum levels of Vitamin D, HDL, and LDL were measured, and neuronal damage was assessed in the hippocampus and somatosensory cortex. The PTZ + EX group showed a significant increase in serum HDL and Vitamin D levels compared to the PTZ group. Histological analysis revealed a significant increase in neuronal damage in the PTZ group compared to the sham group. In contrast, both PTZ + EX and EX groups demonstrated a reduction in neuronal damage compared to the PTZ group. These findings suggest that HDL and Vitamin D may contribute to the neuroprotective benefits of exercise. Furthermore, exercise could potentially serve as a complementary strategy to counteract Vitamin D and HDL deficiencies associated with long-term antiepileptic drug use.

Keywords
Exercise
Vitamin D
Lipoproteins
Hippocampus
Somatosensory cortex
Epilepsy
Funding
This study was supported by the Iran University of Medical Sciences (grant NO. 1400-2-21-21671).
Conflict of interest
The authors declare that they have no competing interests.
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Advanced Neurology, Electronic ISSN: 2810-9619 Print ISSN: 3060-8589, Published by AccScience Publishing
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