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Meta-Analysis
. 2015 Jan 20:5:7790.
doi: 10.1038/srep07790.

A systematic review and meta-analysis of Ginsenoside-Rg1 (G-Rg1) in experimental ischemic stroke

Cheng-long Xie  1 , Wen-Wen Wang  2 , Xiao-dong Xue  3 , Su-fang Zhang  1 , Jing Gan  1 , Zhen-Guo Liu  1
Affiliations
Meta-Analysis

A systematic review and meta-analysis of Ginsenoside-Rg1 (G-Rg1) in experimental ischemic stroke

Cheng-long Xie et al. Sci Rep. .

Abstract

The neuroprotective actions of Ginsenoside-Rg1 (G-Rg1) have been documented for experimental stroke therapy. We used a systematic review and meta-analysis to assess the efficacy of G-Rg1 in experimental ischemic stroke. We identified studies describing the efficacy of G-Rg1 in animal models of focal cerebral ischemia. Primary outcomes were infarct volume and neurological function score (NFS). In all, eleven studies reported significant effects of G-Rg1 for improving the NFS when compared with the control group (P < 0.00001), and four studies reported significant effects of G-Rg1 for reducing infarct volume compared with middle cerebral artery occlusion group (P < 0.00001). Meanwhile, studies reported G-Rg1 was more efficacious than positive control drug nimodipine (0.7 or 1 mg/kg, intraperitoneal) according to NFS (P = 0.009) and infarct volume (p = 0.0002). The results demonstrate a marked efficacy of G-Rg1 in experimental acute ischemic stroke, but raise concerns that our value of effect size might be overestimate due to factors such as study quality and possible publication bias. Even so, the findings suggest G-Rg1 as a candidate neuroprotective drug for human ischemic stroke.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no competing financial interests.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1. The Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) Flow Diagram.
Figure 2
Figure 2. Pooled estimate of improvement in neurological function score with G-Rg1 according to Zea longa criteria.
Figure 3
Figure 3. Pooled estimate of decrement in infarct volume with G-Rg1.
Figure 4
Figure 4. Bias assessment plot for the effect of G-Rg1 on neurological function score (NFS) by funnel blot (A) and Egger's test (B).
Figure 5
Figure 5. G-Rg1 compared with Nimodipine(0.7 or 1 mg/kg, intraperitoneal)according to neurological function score and infarct volume.
(A) the effect of G-Rg1 compared with Nimodipine in terms of the NFS; (B) the effect of G-Rg1 compared with Nimodipine in terms of the IV; (C) bias assessment plot for the effect of G-Rg1 on NFS.
Figure 6
Figure 6. Subgroup analysis according to neurological function score (NFS).
(A) quality score; (B) type of anesthetic; (C) G-Rg1 dosage (100 mg vs 50 mg vs 25 mg); (D); G-Rg1 dosage (40 mg vs 20 mg vs 10 mg); (E) time of initial treatment. The vertical error bars represent the effect size of G-Rg1 and the error bars represent standard deviations for each group in the subgroup analysis.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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