title: Nefiracetam improves Morris water maze performance following traumatic brain injury in rats.
abstract: Nefiracetam, a pyrrolidone derivative, is a nootropic agent that has facilitated cognitive function in a wide variety of animal models of cognitive dysfunction. The purpose of this study was to investigate the efficacy of the chronic postinjury administration of nefiracetam (DM-9384) in improving cognitive performance following central fluid percussion brain injury in rats. Twenty-four hours following surgical preparation, a sham injury or a moderate fluid percussive injury (2.1 atm) was delivered. Nefiracetam was administered chronically (0 or 9 mg/kg, po, for sham animals and 0, 3, or 9 mg/kg for injured animals) on postinjury days 1-15. Cognitive performance was assessed using the Morris water maze (MWM) on postinjury days 11-15. Chronic administration of 3 and 9 mg/kg nefiracetam attenuated MWM deficits produced by central fluid percussive brain injury. Importantly, the MWM performance of the injured animals treated with 9 mg/kg did not significantly differ from uninjured, sham animals. The 9-mg/kg dose of nefiracetam did not have a positive or negative effect on MWM performance of uninjured animals. The results of the present experiment suggest that a nootropic such as nefiracetam may be an appropriate treatment for trauma-induced cognitive dysfunction.
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychology, Virginia Commonwealth University, P.O. Box 842018, 808 West Franklin Street, Richmond, VA 23284-2018, USA. deford@ufbi.ufl.edu
authors.forename: S M
authors.initials: SM
authors.lastname: DeFord
authors.forename: M S
authors.initials: MS
authors.lastname: Wilson
authors.forename: C J
authors.initials: CJ
authors.lastname: Gibson
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Baranova
authors.forename: R J
authors.initials: RJ
authors.lastname: Hamm
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001930:Brain Injuries / Q000188:drug therapy*; D003071:Cognition / Q000187:drug effects / Q000502:physiology; D008297:Male; D018782:Maze Learning / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000502:physiology; D018697:Nootropic Agents / Q000494:pharmacology* / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D011760:Pyrrolidinones / Q000494:pharmacology* / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D051381:Rats; D017207:Rats, Sprague-Dawley
chemical_list: D018697:Nootropic Agents; D011760:Pyrrolidinones; C058876:nefiracetam