Curcumin alters motor coordination but not total number of Purkinje cells in the cerebellum of adolescent male Wistar rats

OBJECTIVE: The present study aimed at investigating the effects of curcumin on the motor coordination and the estimate of the total number of cerebellar Purkinje cells of adolescent VVistar rats exposed to ethanol. METHODS: The total of 21 male Wistar rats aged 37 d old were divided into three groups, namely ethanol, ethanol-curcumin, and control groups. The ethanol group received 1.5 g/kg ethanol injected intraperitoneally and water given per oral; the ethanol-curcumin group received 1.5 g/kg ethanol injected intraperitoneally and curcumin extract given per oral; the control group received saline injection and oral water. The treatment was carried out daily for one month, after which the motor coordination performance of the rats was examined using revolving drum apparatus at test days 1, 8, and 15. The rats were finally sacrificed and the cerebellum of the rats was further processed for stereological analysis. The estimate of the total number of Purkinje cells was calculated using physical fractionator method. RESULTS: The ethanol-curcumin group performed better than both ethanol and control groups in the motor coordination ability at day 8 of testing (P<0.01). No Purkinje cell loss was observed as a result of one month intraperitoneal injection of ethanol. CONCLUSION: Curcumin may exert beneficial effects on the motor coordination of adolescent rats exposed to ethanol via undetermined hormetic mechanisms.