Objective To study the protective effect of calycosin on cerebral ischemia-reperfusion injury in rats.Methods SPF male SD rats were randomly divided into four groups:the sham operation group,the model group,the calycosin group and the positive drug(edaravone)group.The levels of ANG-1,iNOS and VEGF were detected by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay(ELISA).The protein expression levels of HIF-1α,EGFR and VEGFR1 were detected by Western Blot.The positive cells of GFAP,VWF and GLUT1 were observed by immunohistochemistry.The mRNA expression levels of HIF-1α,VEGFA and RCAN2 were detected by real-time fluorescence quantitative(PCR).Results Calycosin and edaravone could significantly increase the contents of VEGF,ANG-1 and iNOS in serum of SD rats(P<0.05 or P<0.01),significantly increase the protein expression levels of HIF-1α,VEGFR1,EGFR and GLUT1 in brain tissue of SD rats(P<0.05 or P<0.01),and significantly increase the mRNA expression levels of HIF-1α,VEGFA and RCAN2 in brain tissue of SD rats(P<0.05 or P<0.01).Conclusion Calycosin has a certain protective effect on cerebral ischemia-reperfusion rats by improving angiogenesis,and is equivalent to the positive control drug.