The results of the present study indicated that paeonol pretreatment can reduce cerebral infarction volume; neurological deficits; TLR2-, TLR4-, Iba1-, NF-κB-, and IL-1β-immunoreactive cell numbers; and TUNEL-positive cells in cerebral ischemia-reperfusion injured rats. This evidence concerns the gene NFKB1 and cerebral infarction.