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Elder GA, Gama Sosa MA, De Gasperi R, Perez Garcia G, Perez GM, Abutarboush R, Kawoos U, Zhu CW, Janssen WGM, Stone JR, Hof PR, Cook DG, Ahlers ST. The Neurovascular Unit as a Locus of Injury in Low-Level Blast-Induced Neurotrauma. Int J Mol Sci 2024; 25:1150. [PMID: 38256223 PMCID: PMC10816929 DOI: 10.3390/ijms25021150] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/12/2023] [Revised: 01/11/2024] [Accepted: 01/11/2024] [Indexed: 01/24/2024] Open
Abstract
Blast-induced neurotrauma has received much attention over the past decade. Vascular injury occurs early following blast exposure. Indeed, in animal models that approximate human mild traumatic brain injury or subclinical blast exposure, vascular pathology can occur in the presence of a normal neuropil, suggesting that the vasculature is particularly vulnerable. Brain endothelial cells and their supporting glial and neuronal elements constitute a neurovascular unit (NVU). Blast injury disrupts gliovascular and neurovascular connections in addition to damaging endothelial cells, basal laminae, smooth muscle cells, and pericytes as well as causing extracellular matrix reorganization. Perivascular pathology becomes associated with phospho-tau accumulation and chronic perivascular inflammation. Disruption of the NVU should impact activity-dependent regulation of cerebral blood flow, blood-brain barrier permeability, and glymphatic flow. Here, we review work in an animal model of low-level blast injury that we have been studying for over a decade. We review work supporting the NVU as a locus of low-level blast injury. We integrate our findings with those from other laboratories studying similar models that collectively suggest that damage to astrocytes and other perivascular cells as well as chronic immune activation play a role in the persistent neurobehavioral changes that follow blast injury.
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Affiliation(s)
- Gregory A. Elder
- Neurology Service, James J. Peters Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Center, 130 West Kingsbridge Road, Bronx, NY 10468, USA
- Department of Neurology, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, One Gustave Levy Place, New York, NY 10029, USA;
- Department of Psychiatry, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, One Gustave Levy Place, New York, NY 10029, USA; (M.A.G.S.); (R.D.G.)
- Mount Sinai Alzheimer’s Disease Research Center and the Ronald M. Loeb Center for Alzheimer’s Disease, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, USA; (C.W.Z.); (P.R.H.)
| | - Miguel A. Gama Sosa
- Department of Psychiatry, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, One Gustave Levy Place, New York, NY 10029, USA; (M.A.G.S.); (R.D.G.)
- General Medical Research Service, James J. Peters Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Bronx, NY 10468, USA
| | - Rita De Gasperi
- Department of Psychiatry, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, One Gustave Levy Place, New York, NY 10029, USA; (M.A.G.S.); (R.D.G.)
- Research and Development Service, James J. Peters Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Center, 130 West Kingsbridge Road, Bronx, NY 10468, USA;
| | - Georgina Perez Garcia
- Department of Neurology, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, One Gustave Levy Place, New York, NY 10029, USA;
- Research and Development Service, James J. Peters Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Center, 130 West Kingsbridge Road, Bronx, NY 10468, USA;
| | - Gissel M. Perez
- Research and Development Service, James J. Peters Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Center, 130 West Kingsbridge Road, Bronx, NY 10468, USA;
| | - Rania Abutarboush
- Department of Neurotrauma, Operational and Undersea Medicine Directorate, Naval Medical ResearchCommand, 503 Robert Grant Avenue, Silver Spring, MD 20910, USA; (R.A.); (U.K.); (S.T.A.)
- The Henry M. Jackson Foundation for the Advancement of Military Medicine Inc., Bethesda, MD 20817, USA
| | - Usmah Kawoos
- Department of Neurotrauma, Operational and Undersea Medicine Directorate, Naval Medical ResearchCommand, 503 Robert Grant Avenue, Silver Spring, MD 20910, USA; (R.A.); (U.K.); (S.T.A.)
- The Henry M. Jackson Foundation for the Advancement of Military Medicine Inc., Bethesda, MD 20817, USA
| | - Carolyn W. Zhu
- Mount Sinai Alzheimer’s Disease Research Center and the Ronald M. Loeb Center for Alzheimer’s Disease, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, USA; (C.W.Z.); (P.R.H.)
- Research and Development Service, James J. Peters Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Center, 130 West Kingsbridge Road, Bronx, NY 10468, USA;
- Department of Geriatrics and Palliative Care, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, USA
| | - William G. M. Janssen
- Nash Family Department of Neuroscience, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, USA;
- Friedman Brain Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, USA
| | - James R. Stone
- Department of Radiology and Medical Imaging, University of Virginia, 480 Ray C Hunt Drive, Charlottesville, VA 22903, USA;
| | - Patrick R. Hof
- Mount Sinai Alzheimer’s Disease Research Center and the Ronald M. Loeb Center for Alzheimer’s Disease, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, USA; (C.W.Z.); (P.R.H.)
- Department of Geriatrics and Palliative Care, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, USA
- Nash Family Department of Neuroscience, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, USA;
- Friedman Brain Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, USA
| | - David G. Cook
- Geriatric Research Education and Clinical Center, VA Puget Sound Health Care System, 1660 S Columbian Way, Seattle, WA 98108, USA;
- Department of Medicine, University of Washington, 1959 NE Pacific St., Seattle, WA 98195, USA
| | - Stephen T. Ahlers
- Department of Neurotrauma, Operational and Undersea Medicine Directorate, Naval Medical ResearchCommand, 503 Robert Grant Avenue, Silver Spring, MD 20910, USA; (R.A.); (U.K.); (S.T.A.)
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Hollin G. Consider the woodpecker: The contested more-than-human ethics of biomimetic technology and traumatic brain injury. SOCIAL STUDIES OF SCIENCE 2022; 52:149-173. [PMID: 34657493 PMCID: PMC8978470 DOI: 10.1177/03063127211052513] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/13/2023]
Abstract
Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy, or CTE, is a neurodegenerative disease caused by traumatic brain injury and most frequently associated with contact sports such as American Football. Perhaps surprisingly, the woodpecker - an animal apparently immune to the effects of head impacts - has increasingly figured into debates surrounding CTE. On the one hand, the woodpecker is described as being contra-human and used to underscore the radical inappropriateness of humans playing football. On the other, there have been attempts to mitigate against the risk of CTE through the creation of biomimetic technologies inspired by woodpeckers. In this article I examine the highly politicized encounters between humans and woodpeckers and discuss how the politics of re-/dis-/en-tanglement during these interspecies relations is rendered meaningful. I show here, first, that those who seek to keep the human and the woodpecker apart envisage social overhaul while biomimetic technologies are put to work for the status quo. Second, I stress that different forms of entanglement have diverse sociopolitical consequences. I conclude by suggesting that the case of the woodpecker troubles a strand of contemporary scholarship in Science and Technology Studies that argues that biotechnologies are inherently transformatory and that foregrounding entanglement and interspecies relations is ethically generative. Instead, a discursive separation of nature and culture may be innovative.
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Affiliation(s)
- Gregory Hollin
- Gregory Hollin, School of Sociology
and Social Policy, University of Leeds, Leeds LS2 9JT, UK.
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3
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Dinsmore M, Hajat Z, Brenna CT, Fisher J, Venkatraghavan L. Effect of a neck collar on brain turgor: a potential role in preventing concussions? Br J Sports Med 2021; 56:605-607. [PMID: 34824061 DOI: 10.1136/bjsports-2021-103961] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 11/15/2021] [Indexed: 11/04/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Mild internal jugular vein (IJV) compression, aimed at increasing intracranial fluid volume to prevent motion of the brain relative to the skull, has reduced brain injury markers in athletes suffering repeated traumatic brain injuries. However, an increase in intracranial volume with IJV compression has not been well demonstrated. This study used transorbital ultrasound to identify changes in optic nerve sheath diameter (ONSD) as a direct marker of accompanying changes in intracranial volume. METHODS Nineteen young, healthy adult volunteers (13 males and 6 females) underwent IJV compression of 20 cm H2O low in the neck, while in upright posture. IJV cross-sectional area at the level of the cricoid cartilage, and the change in right ONSD 3 mm behind the papillary segment of the optic nerve, were measured by ultrasound. Statistical analysis was performed using a paired t-test with Bonferroni correction. RESULTS Mean (SD) cross-sectional area for the right IJV before and after IJV compression was 0.10 (0.05) cm2 and 0.57 (0.37) cm2, respectively (p=0.001). ONSD before and after IJV compression was 4.6 (0.5) mm and 4.9 (0.5) mm, respectively (p=0.001). CONCLUSIONS These data verify increased cerebral volume following IJV compression, supporting the potential for reduced brain 'slosh' as a mechanism connecting IJV compression to possibly reducing traumatic brain injury following head trauma.
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Affiliation(s)
- Michael Dinsmore
- Department of Anaesthesia and Pain Medicine, Toronto Western Hospital, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
| | - Zakir Hajat
- Department of Anaesthesiology and Pain Medicine, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada
| | - Connor Ta Brenna
- Department of Anaesthesia and Pain Medicine, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
| | - Joseph Fisher
- Department of Anaesthesia and Pain Medicine, Toronto Western Hospital, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
| | - Lashmi Venkatraghavan
- Department of Anaesthesia and Pain Medicine, Toronto Western Hospital, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
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Narad ME, Epstein J, Peugh J, Barber Foss KD, Diekfuss JA, Bonnette S, Orban S, Yuan W, Dudley J, DiCesare CA, Reddington DL, Zhong W, Nissen KS, Shafer J, Avedesian JM, Slutsky-Ganesh AB, Lloyd RS, Howell D, Myer GD. The effect of subconcussive head impact exposure and jugular vein compression on behavioral and cognitive outcomes after a single season of high-school football: A prospective longitudinal trial. J Neurotrauma 2021; 39:49-57. [PMID: 34779241 DOI: 10.1089/neu.2021.0078] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
This prospective longitudinal trial aimed to 1) determine the role of head impact exposure on behavioral/cognitive outcomes, and 2) assess the protective effect(s) of a jugular vein compression (JVC) collar on behavioral/cognitive outcomes following one season of high-school football. Participants included 284 male high-school football players aged 13-18 years enrolled from seven midwestern high-schools. Schools were allocated to the JVC collar intervention(four teams, 140 players) or non-collar/no intervention control (three teams, 144 players) condition. Head impact exposure was measured throughout the season using CSx accelerometers. Outcome measures included post season parent and adolescent report on Strengths and Weaknesses of ADHD Symptoms and Normal Behavior Scale (SWAN) and Post-Concussion Symptom Inventory (PCSI), as well as adolescent performance on Attention Network Task (ANT), digital Trail Making Task (dTMT), and Cued Switching task. No significant effect of head impact exposure or JVC collar use on post-season SWAN or PCSI scores or performance on dTMT and Cued Switching task were noted. There was no effect of head impact exposure on ANT performance; however, the JVC collar group had greater post-season Alerting network scores than the non-collar group (p=.026, d=.22). Findings provide preliminary evidence that the JVC collar may provide some protection to the alerting attention system. These findings should be interpreted cautiously as a greater understanding of the long-term sequalae of head impact exposure and the role of cumulative head impact exposure behavioral/cognitive outcomes is required.
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Affiliation(s)
- Megan E Narad
- Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center, Division of Behavioral Medicine & Clinical Psychology, 3333 Burnet Ave, mlc 10006, Cincinnati, Ohio, United States, 45229;
| | - Jeffery Epstein
- Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center, Division of Behavioral Medicine and Clinical Psychology, Cincinnati, Ohio, United States;
| | - James Peugh
- Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center, 2518, Behavioral Medicine & Clinical Psychology, Cincinnati, Ohio, United States;
| | - Kim D Barber Foss
- Emory University, 1371, Emory Sport Performance and Research Center, Atlanta, Georgia, United States;
| | - Jed A Diekfuss
- Emory University, 1371, Emory Sport Performance and Research Center, Atlanta, Georgia, United States;
| | - Scott Bonnette
- Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center, 2518, The SPORT Center, Division of Sports Medicine, Cincinnati, Ohio, United States;
| | - Sarah Orban
- University of Tampa, Department of psychology, Tampa, FL, United States;
| | - Weihong Yuan
- Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center, 2518, 3333 Burnew Ave, Cincinnati, Ohio, United States, 45229-3026;
| | - Jonathan Dudley
- Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center, 2518, 3333 Burnet Ave, Cincinnati, Ohio, United States, 45229-3026;
| | - Christopher A DiCesare
- University of Michigan, 1259, Department of Mechanical engineering, Ann Arbor, Michigan, United States;
| | - Danielle L Reddington
- Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center, 2518, Cincinnati, Ohio, United States;
| | - Wen Zhong
- Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center, 2518, Cincinnati, Ohio, United States;
| | | | - Jessica Shafer
- Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center, 2518, Cincinnati, Ohio, United States;
| | | | - Alexis B Slutsky-Ganesh
- The University of North Carolina at Greensboro, Department of Kinesiology, Greensboro, North Carolina, United States;
| | - Rhodri S Lloyd
- Cardiff Metropolitan University, 11352, Cardiff, Cardiff, United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland.,AUT University, Auckland, New Zealand.,Waikato Institute of Technology, 3715, Hamilton, New Zealand;
| | - David Howell
- University of Colorado Denver School of Medicine, 12225, Department of Orthopedics , Aurora, Colorado, United States;
| | - Greg D Myer
- Emory University School of Medicine, 12239, Atlanta, Georgia, United States.,the Micheli Center for Sports Injury Prevention, Waltham, Ma, United States;
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5
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Yuan W, Dudley J, Slutsky-Ganesh AB, Leach J, Scheifele P, Altaye M, Barber Foss KD, Diekfuss JD, Rhea CK, Myer GD. White Matter Alteration Following SWAT Explosive Breaching Training and the Moderating Effect of a Neck Collar Device: A DTI and NODDI Study. Mil Med 2021; 186:1183-1190. [PMID: 33939823 DOI: 10.1093/milmed/usab168] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/18/2021] [Revised: 03/18/2021] [Accepted: 04/20/2021] [Indexed: 11/14/2022] Open
Abstract
INTRODUCTION Special Weapons and Tactics (SWAT) personnel who practice breaching with blast exposure are at risk for blast-related head trauma. We aimed to investigate the impact of low-level blast exposure on underlying white matter (WM) microstructure based on diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) and neurite orientation and density imaging (NODDI) in SWAT personnel before and after breacher training. Diffusion tensor imaging is an advanced MRI technique sensitive to underlying WM alterations. NODDI is a novel MRI technique emerged recently that acquires diffusion weighted data from multiple shells modeling for different compartments in the microstructural environment in the brain. We also aimed to evaluate the effect of a jugular vein compression collar device in mitigating the alteration of the diffusion properties in the WM as well as its role as a moderator on the association between the diffusion property changes and the blast exposure. MATERIALS AND METHODS Twenty-one SWAT personnel (10 non-collar and 11 collar) completed the breacher training and underwent MRI at both baseline and after blast exposure. Diffusion weighted data were acquired with two shells (b = 1,000, 2,000 s/mm2) on 3T Phillips scanners. Diffusion tensor imaging metrices, including fractional anisotropy, mean, axial, and radial diffusivity, and NODDI metrics, including neurite density index (NDI), isotropic volume fraction (fiso), and orientation dispersion index, were calculated. Tract-based spatial statistics was used in the voxel-wise statistical analysis. Post hoc analyses were performed for the quantification of the pre- to post-blast exposure diffusion percentage change in the WM regions with significant group difference and for the assessment of the interaction of the relationship between blast exposure and diffusion alteration. RESULTS The non-collar group exhibited significant pre- to post-blast increase in NDI (corrected P < .05) in the WM involving the right internal capsule, the right posterior corona radiation, the right posterior thalamic radiation, and the right sagittal stratum. A subset of these regions showed significantly greater alteration in NDI and fiso in the non-collar group when compared with those in the collar group (corrected P < .05). In addition, collar wearing exhibited a significant moderating effect for the alteration of fiso for its association with average peak pulse pressure. CONCLUSIONS Our data provided initial evidence of the impact of blast exposure on WM diffusion alteration based on both DTI and NODDI. The mitigating effect of WM diffusivity changes and the moderating effect of collar wearing suggest that the device may serve as a promising solution to protect WM against blast exposure.
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Affiliation(s)
- Weihong Yuan
- Pediatric Neuroimaging Research Consortium, Division of Radiology, Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center, Cincinnati, OH 45229, USA.,Department of Radiology, University of Cincinnati College of Medicine, Cincinnati, OH 45267, USA
| | - Jonathan Dudley
- Pediatric Neuroimaging Research Consortium, Division of Radiology, Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center, Cincinnati, OH 45229, USA
| | - Alexis B Slutsky-Ganesh
- Department of Kinesiology, The University of North Carolina at Greensboro, Greensboro, NC 27412, USA
| | - James Leach
- Division of Radiology, Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center, Cincinnati, OH 45229, USA.,Department of Radiology, University of Cincinnati College of Medicine, Cincinnati, OH 45267, USA
| | - Pete Scheifele
- Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders, University of Cincinnati, College of Allied Health Sciences, Cincinnati, OH 45219, USA.,Department of Medical Education, University of Cincinnati College of Medicine, Cincinnati, OH 45219, USA
| | - Mekibib Altaye
- Division of Biostatistics and Epidemiology, Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center, Cincinnati, OH 45229, USA.,Department of Pediatrics, University of Cincinnati College of Medicine, Cincinnati, OH 45229, USA
| | - Kim D Barber Foss
- Emory Sports Performance and Research Center, Flowery Branch, GA 30542, USA
| | - Jed D Diekfuss
- Emory Sports Performance and Research Center, Flowery Branch, GA 30542, USA.,Department of Orthopaedics, Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, GA 30322, USA
| | - Christopher K Rhea
- Department of Kinesiology, The University of North Carolina at Greensboro, Greensboro, NC 27412, USA
| | - Gregory D Myer
- Emory Sports Performance and Research Center, Flowery Branch, GA 30542, USA.,Department of Orthopaedics, Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, GA 30322, USA.,Emory Sports Medicine Center, Atlanta, GA 30329, USA.,The Micheli Center for Sports Injury Prevention, Waltham, MA 02453, USA
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6
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Belding JN, Englert RM, Fitzmaurice S, Jackson JR, Koenig HG, Hunter MA, Thomsen CJ, da Silva UO. Potential Health and Performance Effects of High-Level and Low-Level Blast: A Scoping Review of Two Decades of Research. Front Neurol 2021; 12:628782. [PMID: 33776888 PMCID: PMC7987950 DOI: 10.3389/fneur.2021.628782] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/12/2020] [Accepted: 02/10/2021] [Indexed: 01/06/2023] Open
Abstract
Although blast exposure has been recognized as a significant source of morbidity and mortality in military populations, our understanding of the effects of blast exposure, particularly low-level blast (LLB) exposure, on health outcomes remains limited. This scoping review provides a comprehensive, accessible review of the peer-reviewed literature that has been published on blast exposure over the past two decades, with specific emphasis on LLB. We conducted a comprehensive scoping review of the scientific literature published between January 2000 and 2019 pertaining to the effects of blast injury and/or exposure on human and animal health. A three-level review process with specific inclusion and exclusion criteria was used. A full-text review of all articles pertaining to LLB exposure was conducted and relevant study characteristics were extracted. The research team identified 3,215 blast-relevant articles, approximately half of which (55.4%) studied live humans, 16% studied animals, and the remainder were non-subjects research (e.g., literature reviews). Nearly all (99.49%) of the included studies were conducted by experts in medicine or epidemiology; approximately half of these articles were categorized into more than one medical specialty. Among the 51 articles identified as pertaining to LLB specifically, 45.1% were conducted on animals and 39.2% focused on human subjects. Animal studies of LLB predominately used shock tubes to induce various blast exposures in rats, assessed a variety of outcomes, and clearly demonstrated that LLB exposure is associated with brain injury. In contrast, the majority of LLB studies on humans were conducted among military and law enforcement personnel in training environments and had remarkable variability in the exposures and outcomes assessed. While findings suggest that there is the potential for LLB to harm human populations, findings are mixed and more research is needed. Although it is clear that more research is needed on this rapidly growing topic, this review highlights the detrimental effects of LLB on the health of both animals and humans. Future research would benefit from multidisciplinary collaboration, larger sample sizes, and standardization of terminology, exposures, and outcomes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jennifer N. Belding
- Defense Health Group, Leidos, San Diego, CA, United States
- Health and Behavioral Sciences Department, Naval Health Research Center, San Diego, CA, United States
| | - Robyn M. Englert
- Defense Health Group, Leidos, San Diego, CA, United States
- Health and Behavioral Sciences Department, Naval Health Research Center, San Diego, CA, United States
| | - Shannon Fitzmaurice
- Defense Health Group, Leidos, San Diego, CA, United States
- Health and Behavioral Sciences Department, Naval Health Research Center, San Diego, CA, United States
| | - Jourdan R. Jackson
- Defense Health Group, Leidos, San Diego, CA, United States
- Health and Behavioral Sciences Department, Naval Health Research Center, San Diego, CA, United States
| | - Hannah G. Koenig
- Defense Health Group, Leidos, San Diego, CA, United States
- Health and Behavioral Sciences Department, Naval Health Research Center, San Diego, CA, United States
| | - Michael A. Hunter
- Defense Health Group, Leidos, San Diego, CA, United States
- Health and Behavioral Sciences Department, Naval Health Research Center, San Diego, CA, United States
| | - Cynthia J. Thomsen
- Health and Behavioral Sciences Department, Naval Health Research Center, San Diego, CA, United States
| | - Uade Olaghere da Silva
- Health and Behavioral Sciences Department, Naval Health Research Center, San Diego, CA, United States
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7
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Perez Garcia G, De Gasperi R, Gama Sosa MA, Perez GM, Otero-Pagan A, Pryor D, Abutarboush R, Kawoos U, Hof PR, Dickstein DL, Cook DG, Gandy S, Ahlers ST, Elder GA. Laterality and region-specific tau phosphorylation correlate with PTSD-related behavioral traits in rats exposed to repetitive low-level blast. Acta Neuropathol Commun 2021; 9:33. [PMID: 33648608 PMCID: PMC7923605 DOI: 10.1186/s40478-021-01128-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/30/2020] [Accepted: 02/07/2021] [Indexed: 12/14/2022] Open
Abstract
Military veterans who experience blast-related traumatic brain injuries often suffer from chronic cognitive and neurobehavioral syndromes. Reports of abnormal tau processing following blast injury have raised concerns that some cases may have a neurodegenerative basis. Rats exposed to repetitive low-level blast exhibit chronic neurobehavioral traits and accumulate tau phosphorylated at threonine 181 (Thr181). Using data previously reported in separate studies we tested the hypothesis that region-specific patterns of Thr181 phosphorylation correlate with behavioral measures also previously determined and reported in the same animals. Elevated p-tau Thr181 in anterior neocortical regions and right hippocampus correlated with anxiety as well as fear learning and novel object localization. There were no correlations with levels in amygdala or posterior neocortical regions. Particularly striking were asymmetrical effects on the right and left hippocampus. No systematic variation in head orientation toward the blast wave seems to explain the laterality. Levels did not correlate with behavioral measures of hyperarousal. Results were specific to Thr181 in that no correlations were observed for three other phospho-acceptor sites (threonine 231, serine 396, and serine 404). No consistent correlations were linked with total tau. These correlations are significant in suggesting that p-tau accumulation in anterior neocortical regions and the hippocampus may lead to disinhibited amygdala function without p-tau elevation in the amygdala itself. They also suggest an association linking blast injury with tauopathy, which has implications for understanding the relationship of chronic blast-related neurobehavioral syndromes in humans to neurodegenerative diseases.
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8
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Barpujari A, Pierre K, Dodd W, Dagra A, Small C, Williams E, Clark A, Lucke-Wold B. Lessons from NATURE: methods for traumatic brain injury prevention. ARCHIVES OF CLINICAL TOXICOLOGY 2021; 3:34-41. [PMID: 34993525 PMCID: PMC8730289] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/08/2023]
Abstract
Multiple species obtain repetitive head collisions throughout the course of their lifetimes with minimal neurologic deficit. Nature has allowed the unique development of multiple protective mechanisms to help prevent neurotrauma. In this review, we examine the concept of rapid brain movement within the skull 'Slosh' and what nature teaches on how to prevent this from occurring. We look at individual animals and the protective mechanisms at play. Marching from macroscopic down to the molecular level, we pinpoint key elements of neuroprotection that are likely contributing. We also introduce new concepts for neuroprotection and address avenues of further discovery.
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Affiliation(s)
- Arnav Barpujari
- Department of Neurosurgery, University of Florida, Gainesville, USA
| | - Kevin Pierre
- Department of Neurosurgery, University of Florida, Gainesville, USA
| | - William Dodd
- Department of Neurosurgery, University of Florida, Gainesville, USA
| | - Abeer Dagra
- Department of Neurosurgery, University of Florida, Gainesville, USA
| | - Coulter Small
- Department of Neurosurgery, University of Florida, Gainesville, USA
| | - Eric Williams
- Department of Neurosurgery, University of Florida, Gainesville, USA
| | - Alec Clark
- Department of Neurosurgery, University of Florida, Gainesville, USA
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9
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Smoliga JM. Interpreting Biomarker Data After Concussion and Repeated Subconcussive Head Impacts: Challenges in Evaluating Brain Protection. JAMA Neurol 2020; 77:1477-1478. [PMID: 33017015 DOI: 10.1001/jamaneurol.2020.3467] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/13/2023]
Affiliation(s)
- James M Smoliga
- Department of Physical Therapy, High Point University, High Point, North Carolina
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