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The treatments were administered intraperitoneally the day after RT. Brain tissues were evaluated 28 days post-irradiation for histopathological neural damage, vasocongestion, and immunohistochemical expression of vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) and interleukin-2 (IL-2).<\/jats:p>\n                  <\/jats:sec>\n                  <jats:sec>\n                    <jats:title>Results<\/jats:title>\n                    <jats:p>\n                      High-dose RT significantly increased vasocongestion and neuronal damage while suppressing VEGF expression and elevating IL-2 levels (\n                      <jats:italic>p<\/jats:italic>\n                      \u2009&lt;\u20090.001). Both melatonin and ascorbic acid effectively reduced histopathological injury, maintained VEGF levels, and balanced IL-2 expression compared to the RT-only group (\n                      <jats:italic>p<\/jats:italic>\n                      \u2009&lt;\u20090.05). However, combining both agents provided no significant synergistic advantage over monotherapies. Notably, single-fraction high-dose RT resulted in a marked suppression of VEGF expression, suggesting an impaired vascular synthetic capacity rather than a compensatory angiogenic response.\n                    <\/jats:p>\n                  <\/jats:sec>\n                  <jats:sec>\n                    <jats:title>Conclusion<\/jats:title>\n                    <jats:p>Melatonin and ascorbic acid provide substantial neuroprotection against radiation-induced brain injury by preserving vascular integrity and modulating local immune responses. These antioxidants represent potential therapeutic strategies for minimizing RT-induced neurotoxicity.<\/jats:p>\n                  <\/jats:sec>","DOI":"10.1007\/s11060-026-05484-9","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2026,2,27]],"date-time":"2026-02-27T11:15:38Z","timestamp":1772190938000},"update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1007\/springer_crossmark_policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":0,"title":["Modulation of VEGF and IL-2 in radiation-induced brain injury: neuroprotective effects of melatonin and ascorbic acid in rats"],"prefix":"10.1007","volume":"177","author":[{"given":"Gulhan","family":"Guler Avci","sequence":"first","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Fikret","family":"Gevrek","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Sefa","family":"Colak","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Asiye","family":"Yanci","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]}],"member":"297","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2026,2,27]]},"reference":[{"key":"5484_CR1","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"1215","DOI":"10.1016\/0360-3016(80)90175-3","volume":"6","author":"GE Sheline","year":"1980","unstructured":"Sheline GE, Wara WM, Smith M (1980) Therapeutic irradiation and brain injury. 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