Sildenafil reduces neuroinflammation in cerebellum, restores GABAergic tone, and improves motor in‐coordination in rats with hepatic encephalopathy

Aims Patients with liver disease may develop hepatic encephalopathy (HE), with cognitive impairment and motor in‐coordination. Rats with HE due to portacaval shunts (PCS) show motor in‐coordination. We hypothesized that in PCS rats: (i) Motor in‐coordination would be due to enhanced GABAergic tone in cerebellum; (ii) increased GABAergic tone would be due to neuroinflammation; (iii) increasing cGMP would reduce neuroinflammation and GABAergic tone and restore motor coordination. To assess these hypotheses, we assessed if (i) treatment with sildenafil reduces neuroinflammation; (ii) reduced neuroinflammation is associated with reduced GABAergic tone and restored motor coordination.