The neuroprotective effects of Piracetam on cisplatin-induced cognitive decline

Abstract

Aim

This work explores the effect of Cisplatin—a chemotherapeutic agent known to cause deterioration in cognitive function in cancer patients, and spatial memory in mice. It also investigates the potential neuroprotective effects of Piracetam, which is a nootropic drug recognized for improving cognitive ability.

Materials and methods

The study incorporates four groups of mice receiving varied medication regimens, with memory tested using the Novel Location Recognition (NLR) method.

Results

The findings from our study revealed that memory decline and a suppression of cellular proliferation were observed in adult male mice subjected to Cisplatin treatment; furthermore, a decline in antioxidant efficacy within the hippocampal dentate gyrus was evident. Moreover, analysis of treatment effects on the animals’ weight revealed that the Cisplatin and Piracetam group exhibited the most significant weight loss during drug administration. Despite the significant weight loss, the simultaneous use of Cisplatin and Piracetam demonstrated a notable improvement in memory and an augmentation of hippocampal proliferation and antioxidant effect.

Limitations

It is important to note that our study was hampered by budget limits, a lack of additional animals, and mice’s low tolerance for protracted treatment.

Conclusions

Should the outcomes of Piracetam observed in this investigation be applicable to patients, it might offer a relatively straightforward approach to mitigate the cognitive impacts endured by cancer survivors following exposure to chemotherapy. Future research will be needed to study Piracetam’s effect on mice with brain cancer after Cisplatin treatment in order to extrapolate the results onto cancer patients.

Keywords:

• Piracetam
• cisplatin
• mice
• neurogenesis
• cognition

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Additional information

Funding

This research was funded by the Dean of Scientific research at the University of Jordan.