A team of biomedical engineering researchers at the University of Arkansas have identified a cause of fluid swelling of the brain, or cellular edema,that occurs during a concussion.
The researchers discovered that pre-treating the cells with an existing, FDA-approved drug used for epilepsy and altitude sickness reduces the expression of a specific protein that causes swelling.
Their findings were published in a recent issue of Nature’s Scientific Reports .
“Our study found that mild traumatic brain injury resulted in increased expression of a protein called aquaporin-4, which caused a massive cellular influx of fluid, leading to increased astrocyte cell volume and injury,” said Kartik Balachandran, assistant professor of biomedical engineering. “We then worked with a drug called Acetazolamide. Our results showed that Acetazolamide minimized cell swelling and injury, suggesting a therapeutic role for this drug in reducing the detrimental effects of concussions.”
(Score: 3, Interesting) by inertnet on Friday November 25 2016, @10:43AM
https://www.urmc.rochester.edu/news/story/2562/blue-dye-may-hold-promise-in-treating-spinal-cord-injury.aspx [rochester.edu]
Photo's: http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2009/07/photogalleries/blue-rats-food-dye-heals-pictures/index.html [nationalgeographic.com]