摘要Human hepatocyte growth factor can be used to treat cerebral infarction, administered by lateral ventricular, cerebellomedullary cistern or subarachnoid injections. However, the target gene expression product is scarcely found in the ischemic penumbra, but extensively distributes in other regions, increasing the risks of gene therapy. The present study directly transfected hepatocyte growth factor gene into the ischemic penumbra of rats with transient middle cerebral artery occlusion. Immunohistochemical analysis revealed that infarct volume was significantly decreased, hepatocyte growth factor protein expression level and vessel quantity in the ischemic penumbra were significantly increased, and learning and memory were significantly improved.