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Background and Objective: Alzheimer is the most common form of dementia in elderly persons. Oxidative stress is one of the main pathological factors in Alzheimer’s disease. This study was done to investigate the effect of crosin on histological changes of hippocampus and memory impairment which induced by scopolamine in the male rats.
Methods: In this experimental study, 30 male rats were randomly allocated into 3 groups including: control, scopolamine and scopolamine with crosin treated groups. Scopolamine with dose of 3 mg/kg/bw for one week and crocin with dose of 30mg/kg for two weeks were administered, intraperitoneally. The learning and spatial memory parameters were evaluated by Morris water maze test. Then the animals were sacrificed and their hippocampi were removed immediately for histological evaluation.
Results: Scopolamine injection causes significantly increased the number of dark cells in CA1 region of hippocampus in compared to control group (P<0.05). Treatment with crocin decreased dark cells and increased light cells number in CA1 region of hippocampus (P<0.05). Also treatment with crocin decreased memory impairment that induced by scopolamine in rats (P<0.05).
Conclusion: It seems that treatment with crocin has protective effects against neuronal damage of CA1 region of hippocampus and memory impairment that induced by scopolamine.

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Background and Objective: At high doses, lipopolysaccharide (LPS) acts as an endotoxin and induces acute kidney injury (AKI) in rodents. Crocin, a carotenoid and one of the active constituents of saffron, has numerous pharmacological properties, including antioxidant and anti-inflammatory activities. This study aimed to determine the effects of crocin on oxidative stress and inflammatory markers in LPS-induced AKI in male C57BL/6 mice.
Methods: This experimental study was conducted on 24 male C57BL/6 mice weighing 19-23 g and aged 8-10 weeks at the Experimental Studies Laboratory of Shahed University. The animals were randomly assigned to four groups of six: control, LPS, LPS plus crocin at 10 mg/kg body weight, and LPS plus crocin at 50 mg/kg body weight. In the treatment groups, crocin at 10 or 50 mg/kg body weight, dissolved in Califor vehicle, was administered by gavage twice at a 24-hour interval, with the second dose given one hour before LPS injection. To induce AKI, LPS dissolved in normal saline (10 mg/kg body weight) was injected intraperitoneally one hour after the final crocin dose. Biomarkers of renal function and oxidative stress, as well as inflammatory and anti-inflammatory factors, were evaluated.
Results: Compared with the LPS group, treatment with crocin at 50 mg/kg body weight significantly reduced serum creatinine (0.54±0.05; P<0.01) and BUN (25.80±2.40; P<0.05). The renal oxidative-stress marker MDA (2.75±0.22) also decreased significantly, whereas SOD activity (5.75±0.36) increased significantly (P<0.05). Crocin treatment also significantly reduced TNF-α (41.80±3.50; P<0.01) and increased IL-10 (52.90±3.30; P<0.05) compared with the LPS group.
Conclusion: Crocin may prevent LPS-induced AKI by suppressing oxidative stress and inflammatory mediators in renal tissue.