title: Severity profile of penetrating ballistic-like brain injury on neurofunctional outcome, blood-brain barrier permeability, and brain edema formation.
abstract: This study evaluated the injury severity profile of unilateral, frontal penetrating ballistic-like brain injury (PBBI) on neurofunctional outcome, blood-brain barrier (BBB) permeability, and brain edema formation. The degree of injury severity was determined by the delivery of a water-pressure pulse designed to produce a temporary cavity by rapid (<40 ms) expansion of the probe's elastic balloon calibrated to equal 5%, 10%, 12.5%, or 15% of total rat brain volume (control groups consisted of sham surgery or insertion of the probe only). Neurofunctional assessments revealed motor and cognitive deficits related to the degree of injury severity, with the most clear-cut profile of PBBI injury severity depicted by the Morris water maze (MWM) results. A biphasic pattern of BBB leakage was detected in the injured hemisphere at all injury severity levels at 4 h post-injury, and again at 48-72 h post-injury, which remained evident out to 7 days post-PBBI in the 10% and 12.5% PBBI groups. Likewise, significant brain edema was detected in the injured hemisphere by 4 h post-injury and remained elevated out to 7 days post-injury in the 10% and 12.5% PBBI groups. However, following 5% PBBI, significant levels of edema were only detected from 24 h to 48h post-injury. These results identify an injury severity profile of BBB permeability, brain edema, and neurofunctional impairment that provides sensitive and clinically relevant outcome metrics for studying potential therapeutics.
authors.affiliation: Brain Trauma Neuroprotection and Neurorestoration, Center for Military Psychiatry and Neuroscience, Walter Reed Army Institute of Research, Silver Spring, Maryland 20910, USA. Deborah.Shear@AMEDD.ARMY.MIL
authors.forename: Deborah A
authors.initials: DA
authors.lastname: Shear
authors.forename: Xi-Chun May
authors.initials: XC
authors.lastname: Lu
authors.forename: Rebecca
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Pedersen
authors.forename: Guo
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Wei
authors.forename: Zhiyong
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.forename: Angela
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Davis
authors.forename: Changping
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Yao
authors.forename: Jitendra
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Dave
authors.forename: Frank C
authors.initials: FC
authors.lastname: Tortella
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001522:Behavior, Animal / Q000502:physiology; D001812:Blood-Brain Barrier / Q000473:pathology / Q000502:physiology*; D001921:Brain / Q000473:pathology; D001929:Brain Edema / Q000209:etiology* / Q000473:pathology; D005119:Extravasation of Diagnostic and Therapeutic Materials; D005552:Forelimb / Q000502:physiology; D007839:Functional Laterality; D020197:Head Injuries, Penetrating / Q000150:complications / Q000473:pathology* / Q000601:surgery; D007427:Intracranial Pressure / Q000502:physiology; D008297:Male; D018782:Maze Learning / Q000502:physiology; D009422:Nervous System Diseases / Q000209:etiology* / Q000473:pathology; D019635:Neurosurgical Procedures; D010539:Permeability; D004856:Postural Balance / Q000502:physiology; D051381:Rats; D017207:Rats, Sprague-Dawley; D020127:Recovery of Function