Introduction: A large body of experimental evidence supports a role for oxidative stress as a mediator of nerve cell death in Parkinson's disease (PD). Flavonoids like quercetin have been reported to prevent neuronal degeneration caused by increased oxidative burden, therefore, this study examined whether quercetin administration at a high dose would attenuate behavioral abnormalities in experimental model of PD in rat.

Methods: For this purpose, unilateral intrastriatal 6-hydroxydopamine (6-OHDA)-lesioned rats were pretreated with quercetin (20 mg/kg i.p.) 1 hour before surgery and treated once a day for one month. After one month, apomorphine-induced rotational behavior was measured postlesion.

Results: Apomorphine-induced rotations were counted after 4 weeks. Quercetin administration could attenuate the rotational behavior in treated lesioned rats as compared to untreated ones.

Discussion: Flavonoid quercetin administration for one month could attenuate behavioral abnormalities in 6-OHDA model of PD.