The Protective Effects of Endurance Training and Crocin on Tissue Changes of the Cerebral Cortex in an Animal Model of Methamphetamine Addiction

The present research aimed to investigate the protective effects of endurance training and crocin on tissue changes of the cerebral cortex in an animal model of methamphetamine addiction.

In this experimental study, 40 female Wistar rats from Shahrood University of Medical Sciences weighing 140-160 grams were divided into five healthy control, methamphetamine, aerobic exercise methamphetamine, methamphetamine and crocin, methamphetamine, crocin, and aerobic exercise groups. 15 mg of methamphetamine was injected intraperitoneally every 12 hours for 4 days to create an animal model of addiction. Also, the crocin dose for the samples was 40 or 80 mg/kg injected intraperitoneally, which was mixed with distilled water and was performed over 5 days. Aerobic exercise program including running on a treadmill 12-15 meters per minute for five days a week was implemented for eight weeks. After anesthesia, an autopsy was performed and samples of cerebral cortex tissue were taken. Kruskal-Wallis test was used to analyze the data and compare the rank values.

The results showed that in the animal model of methamphetamine addiction, tissue and cellular disorganization, changes in the shape and size of pyramidal neurons, and a decrease in the number of microglia cells were observed compared to the control group. Endurance training, consumption of crocin supplementation, and aerobic exercise, along with consumption of crocin supplementation, were associated with improved tissue and cellular changes in the cerebral cortex tissue in the animal model of methamphetamine addiction compared to the methamphetamine group.

It seems that aerobic exercise and crocin supplementation can help reduce tissue damage and improve the neural factors of the cerebral cortex in the animal model of methamphetamine addiction.