PRECLINICAL ASSESSMENT OF IMMUNOCAL AS A PREVENTATIVE TREATMENT FOR TRAUMATIC BRAIN INJURY (TBI) IN A MOUSE MODEL OF CLOSED HEAD INJURY

摘要

Over the past three decades, traumatic brain injury (TBI) has been considereda"silent epidemic" and recognized as an emergent public health problem by theCenters forDisease Control and Prevention (CDC). TBI is defined as a bump, blow, or joltto thehead that disrupts the normal function of the brain. Due to the debilitatingeffects andprevalence of TBI, novel preventative treatment regimens are highly desirablein at riskpopulations, According to the CDC groups disproportionately affected by TBIincludeathletes, people aged 75+, and service men and women, among others. Here, weinvestigated a unique whey protein supplement, Immunocal®,.to determineits ability toboost resilience of neurons prior to injury. It has been previously describedthatImmunocaI ® functions specifically by increasing levels of the essentialantioxidantglutathione (GSH). We hypothesize that boosting brain levels of GSH will helpmediatecognitive, physical, and histopathological indices post TBI in a mouse modelof closedhead impact injury. We found that twice daily supplementation with 0.03%Immunocal®for 28-35 days prior to impact significantly improved animal motorcoordination and to alesser extent, cognitive performance. Histopathological results also suggestedasignificant effect on corpus callosum size and a decreased presence ofdegeneratingneurons in Immunocal®-treated animals compared to untreated TBI animals.However,no effect was seen in measured clinical effects, or primary injury using MRIanalysis.These cumulative data suggest that Immunocal®, while unable to attenuatedamage doneby the primary injury, was helpful in alleviating secondary injury mechanisms.In thefuture, this compound could hold promise in TBI therapies.