NEUROPROTECTIVE EFFECT OF CHLORZOXAZONE AGAINST GLUTAMATE TOXICITY IN RAT PRIMARY CORTEX NEURON CULTURE

Glutamate (Glut) toxicity is one of the main causes of neurological diseases. Chlorzoxazone (CZ) is a muscle relaxant used to decrease pain and inflammation associated with acute and chronic twists and bruises. Here, we objected to research the neuroprotective effect of CZ applied to reverse Glut-induced neurodegeneration in the neonatal cerebral cortex through anti-inflammatory and antioxidant mechanisms. Neonatal cortical neurons were exposed to Glut and different doses of CZ (10, 20, and 40 µM) were applied to assess the effect of CZ on Glut toxicity. We then examined changes in cell viability, inflammation, and oxidative stress. Our cell viability analysis showed that CZ protected cells from Glut-induced neuronal damage. In addition, the neuroprotective properties of CZ were evaluated by examining oxidative and antioxidant parameters such as MDA, MPO, CAT, GSH, GPx, and SOD. In line with the data obtained, it was observed that the cell viability rate decreased to 60% in the Glut group. However, with CZ application, the most significant increase in cell viability was seen at the 40 μM dose (86%), while the least increase was seen at 10 μM CZ (77%). It also proved that CZ increased the activity of antioxidant parameters while reducing oxidative parameters and inflammation. Therefore, the present findings collectively demonstrated that CZ potently inhibits Glut-induced injury in neonatal cortical neurons. The present work is the initial to show the protective effect of CZ in neonatal cortical neurons exposed to Glut excitotoxicity and suggesting that CZ may be used as a therapeutic agent.