title: Cognitive assessment of pycnogenol therapy following traumatic brain injury.
abstract: We have previously shown that pycnogenol (PYC) increases antioxidants, decreases oxidative stress, suppresses neuroinflammation and enhances synaptic plasticity following traumatic brain injury (TBI). Here, we investigate the effects of PYC on cognitive function following a controlled cortical impact (CCI). Adult Sprague-Dawley rats received a CCI injury followed by an intraperitoneal injection of PYC (50 or 100mg/kg). Seven days post trauma, subjects were evaluated in a Morris water maze (MWM) and evaluated for changes in lesion volume. Some animals were evaluated at 48h for hippocampal Fluoro-jade B (FJB) staining. The highest dose of PYC therapy significantly reduced lesion volume, with no improvement in MWM compared to vehicle controls. PYC failed to reduce the total number of FJB positive neurons in the hippocampus. These results suggest that the reduction of oxidative stress and neuroinflammation are not the key components of the secondary injury that contribute to cognitive deficits following TBI.
authors.affiliation: Sanders-Brown Center on Aging, University of Kentucky, Lexington, KY 40536, United States. Electronic address: sscheff@email.uky.edu.
authors.forename: Stephen W
authors.initials: SW
authors.lastname: Scheff
authors.affiliation: Sanders-Brown Center on Aging, University of Kentucky, Lexington, KY 40536, United States.
authors.forename: Kelly N
authors.initials: KN
authors.lastname: Roberts
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D000070642:Brain Injuries, Traumatic / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000473:pathology / Q000523:psychology; D002540:Cerebral Cortex / Q000187:drug effects / Q000473:pathology; D003072:Cognition Disorders / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000523:psychology; D005419:Flavonoids / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D006624:Hippocampus / Q000187:drug effects / Q000473:pathology; D008297:Male; D018782:Maze Learning / Q000187:drug effects; D009474:Neurons / Q000187:drug effects / Q000473:pathology; D018696:Neuroprotective Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D010936:Plant Extracts; D017207:Rats, Sprague-Dawley
chemical_list: D005419:Flavonoids; D018696:Neuroprotective Agents; D010936:Plant Extracts; C024070:pycnogenols
keywords: Bioflavonoids; Cortical contusion; Head injury; Natural compounds; Recovery of function; Water maze