Exercise preconditioning improves traumatic brain injury outcomes.

PURPOSE: To determine whether 6 weeks of exercise performed prior to traumatic brain injury (TBI) could improve post-TBI behavioral outcomes in mice, and if exercise increases neuroprotective molecules (vascular endothelial growth factor-A [VEGF-A], erythropoietin [EPO], and heme oxygenase-1 [HO-1]) in brain regions responsible for movement (sensorimotor cortex) and memory (hippocampus). METHODS: 120 mice were randomly assigned to one of four groups: (1) no exercise+no TBI (NOEX-NOTBI [n=30]), (2) no exercise+TBI (NOEX-TBI [n=30]), (3) exercise+no TBI (EX-NOTBI [n=30]), and (4) exercise+TBI (EX-TBI [n=30]). The gridwalk task and radial arm water maze were used to evaluate sensorimotor and cognitive function, respectively. Quantitative real time polymerase chain reaction and immunostaining were performed to investigate VEGF-A, EPO, and HO-1 mRNA and protein expression in the right cerebral cortex and ipsilateral hippocampus. RESULTS: EX-TBI mice displayed reduced post-TBI sensorimotor and cognitive deficits when compared to NOEX-TBI mice. EX-NOTBI and EX-TBI mice showed elevated VEGF-A and EPO mRNA in the cortex and hippocampus, and increased VEGF-A and EPO staining of sensorimotor cortex neurons 1 day post-TBI and/or post-exercise. EX-TBI mice also exhibited increased VEGF-A staining of hippocampal neurons 1 day post-TBI/post-exercise. NOEX-TBI mice demonstrated increased HO-1 mRNA in the cortex (3 days post-TBI) and hippocampus (3 and 7 days post-TBI), but HO-1 was not increased in mice that exercised. CONCLUSIONS: Improved TBI outcomes following exercise preconditioning are associated with increased expression of specific neuroprotective genes and proteins (VEGF-A and EPO, but not HO-1) in the brain.

Neuroglobin overexpression improves sensorimotor outcomes in a mouse model of traumatic brain injury.

There is a significant need for novel treatments that will improve traumatic brain injury (TBI) outcomes. One potential neuroprotective mechanism is to increase oxygen binding proteins such as neuroglobin. Neuroglobin has a high affinity for oxygen, is an effective free radical scavenger, and is neuroprotective within the brain following hypoxia and ischemia. The purpose of this study was to determine whether neuroglobin overexpression improves sensorimotor outcomes following TBI in transgenic neuroglobin overexpressing (NGB) mice. Additional study aims were to determine if and when an endogenous neuroglobin response occurred following TBI in wild-type (WT) mice, and in what brain regions and cell types the response occurred. Controlled cortical impact (CCI) was performed in adult (5 month) C57/BL6 WT mice, and NGB mice constitutively overexpressing neuroglobin via the chicken beta actin promoter coupled with the cytomegalovirus distal enhancer. The gridwalk task was used for sensorimotor testing of both WT and NGB mice, prior to injury, and at 2, 3, and 7 days post-TBI. NGB mice displayed significant reductions in the average number of foot faults per minute walking at 2, 3, and 7 days post-TBI when compared to WT mice at each time point. Neuroglobin mRNA expression was assessed in the injured cortex of WT mice prior to injury, and at 1, 3, 7, and 14 days post-TBI using quantitative real time polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR). Neuroglobin mRNA was significantly increased at 7 days post-TBI. Immunostaining showed neuroglobin primarily localized to neurons and glial cells in the injured cortex and ipsilateral hippocampus of WT mice, while neuroglobin was present in all brain regions of NGB mice at 7 days post-TBI. These results showed that overexpression of neuroglobin reduced sensorimotor deficits following TBI, and that an endogenous increase in neuroglobin expression occurs during the subacute period. Increasing neuroglobin expression through novel therapeutic interventions during the acute period after TBI may improve recovery.