Objective To explore the changes of endostatin （a strong anti-angiogenesis factor） and vascular endothelial growth factor （VEGF） in the brain tissues of rabbits following cerebral ischemia induced by middle cerebral artery occlusion （MCAO）. Methods Twenty-four New Zealand white rabbits were randomly divided into 5 groups： control （n = 5）, sham-operation （n = 4）, 2-hour ischemia （n = 5）, 24-hour ischemia （n = 5）, and 48-hour ischemia （n = 5）. The expression of VEGF and endostatin were measured by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay （ELISA） and immunohistochemistry, respectively. In situ hybridization was used to characterize the expression of mRNA for the endostatin. Results Both the protein （at least 50%, P 〈 0.01） and mRNA （at least 70%, P 〈 0.05） of endostatin increased significantly in the ischemic brain tissues after MCAO compared with the control group. VEGF increased at least 270% in the brain after cerebral ischemia （P 〈 0.05）. Conclusion Cerebral ischemia leads to an up-regulation of endostatin in the brain, which is not associated with the increase of VEGF in the brain. The increase of endostatin may serve as a deleterious mechanism for ischemic injury through blocking angiogenesis.
