title: Influence of acute ethanol intoxication on neuronal apoptosis and Bcl-2 protein expression after severe traumatic brain injury in rats.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To study the influence and mechanism of acute ethanol intoxication (AEI) on rat neuronal apoptosis after severe traumatic brain injury (TBI).
  
  
  METHODS
  Ninety-six Sprague-Dawley rats were randomly divided into four groups: normal control, AEI-only, TBI-only and TBI+AEI (n equal to 24 for each). Severe TBI model was developed according to Feeney's method. Rats in TBI+AEI group were firstly subjected to AEI, and then suffered head trauma. In each group, animals were sacrificed at 6 h, 24 h, 72 h, and 168 h after TBI. The level of neuronal apoptosis and the expression of Bcl-2 protein were determined by TUNEL assay and immunohistochemical method, respectively.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Apoptotic cells mainly distributed in the cortex and white matter around the damaged area. Neuronal apoptosis significantly increased at 6 h after trauma and peaked at 72 h. Both the level of neuronal apoptosis and expression of Bcl-2 protein in TBI-only group and TBI+AEI group were higher than those in control group (P less than 0.05). Compared with TBI-only group, the two indexes were much higher in TBI+AEI group at all time points (P less than 0.05).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Our findings suggest that AEI can increase neuronal apoptosis after severe TBI.
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurosurgery, Second Affiliated Hospital of Zhejiang Chinese Medical University, Hangzhou 310005, China.
authors.forename: Min
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: He
authors.forename: Wei-Guo
authors.initials: WG
authors.lastname: Liu
authors.forename: Liang
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Wen
authors.forename: Hang-Gen
authors.initials: HG
authors.lastname: Du
authors.forename: Li-Chun
authors.initials: LC
authors.lastname: Yin
authors.forename: Li
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Chen
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D017209:Apoptosis / Q000187:drug effects*; D001930:Brain Injuries; D002540:Cerebral Cortex / Q000166:cytology; D004195:Disease Models, Animal; D000431:Ethanol / Q000506:poisoning*; D007150:Immunohistochemistry; D020287:In Situ Nick-End Labeling; D008297:Male; D009474:Neurons / Q000502:physiology*; D016548:Prosencephalon / Q000166:cytology*; D019253:Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-bcl-2 / Q000378:metabolism*; D051381:Rats; D017207:Rats, Sprague-Dawley
chemical_list: D019253:Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-bcl-2; D000431:Ethanol