Inhibition of neocortical plasticity during development by a moderate concussive brain injury.
To determine if a moderate traumatic brain injury (TBI) sustained early in life alters the capacity for developmental plasticity, 17-20-day-old rat pups received a lateral fluid percussion and then reared in an enriched environment for 17 days. Compared to sham-injured controls, this moderate TBI prevented the increase in cortical thickness (1.48 vs. 1.68 mm, p < 0.01) as well as the corresponding enhancement in cognitive performance in the Morris Water Maze (39 vs. 25 trials to criterion, p < 0.05). These injured animals exhibited no significant neuronal degeneration and no evidence of neurologic or motor deficits. These findings strongly support the conclusion that a diffuse brain injury is capable of inhibiting both anatomical and cognitive manifestations of experience-dependent developmental plasticity.
Fineman
I
I
Division of Neurosurgery, UCLA School of Medicine, UCLA Brain Injury Research Center, 90095-7039, USA.
Giza
C C
CC
Nahed
B V
BV
Lee
S M
SM
Hovda
D A
DA
D000818:Animals; D001924:Brain Concussion / Q000473:pathology / Q000503:physiopathology*; D002540:Cerebral Cortex / Q000254:growth & development* / Q000293:injuries* / Q000473:pathology; D003071:Cognition; D004777:Environment; D008297:Male; D018782:Maze Learning / Q000502:physiology; D009043:Motor Activity; D009473:Neuronal Plasticity; D051381:Rats; D017207:Rats, Sprague-Dawley