Research in Medicine

Background: Parkinson’s disease (PD) accompanies with degeneration of dopaminergic neurons of substantia
nigra compacta and other regions of brainstem. Oxidative stress plays an important role in neuronal death in PD.
Superoxide formation is one of the main etiologies of this disease, and angiotensin converting enzyme inhibitors
(ACEIs) are able to suppress superoxide formation. Petroselinum hortense Hoffm is an ACE inhibitor and in
previous work improved behavioral and pathological signs in a rat model of PD. In this research the effect of
Petroselinum hortense Hoffm aqueous extract was studies on lipid peroxidation and protein oxidation.
Methods: Male rats (n=36) were divided in 6 groups: sham, neurotoxin (injection of -6hydroxydopamine into
left hemisphere SNc) Petroselinum hortense Hoffm aqueous extract (20 ,100 and 5 mg/kg), and captopril.
Petroselinum and captopril groups were injected i.p. seven days before and 1 day after of -6hydroxydopamine
injection. Brain protein oxidation and lipid peroxidation as well as brain ACE activity were assayed in 6 groups.
Results: Results showed significant inhibition of brain ACE activity in captopril and parsley groups concentrationdependently
(p<0.001). Protein oxidation and lipid peroxidation were reduced in study groups, but these reduction
were non-significant.
Discussion and conclusion: Prevention of cellular oxidation is not the main mechanism of aqueous extract of
parsley in preventing Parkinson's disease, despite having ACE inhibitory activity.