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Published on: November 19, 2012
Delayed glucose treatment improves cognitive function following fluid-percussion injury
Olga N Kokiko-Cochran1, Maria P Michaels, Robert J Hamm
1Department of Psychology, Virginia Commonwealth University, Box 842018, 808 West Franklin Street, Richmond, VA 23284-2018, United States. kokikoon@vcu.edu
Neuroscience Letters
|March 22, 2008
Summary
Delayed glucose supplementation improved cognitive function in rats after traumatic brain injury (TBI) when given before testing. However, chronic glucose treatment did not enhance recovery, suggesting timing is crucial for TBI metabolic interventions.
Area of Science:
- Neuroscience
- Metabolic Research
- Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI)
Background:
- Traumatic brain injury (TBI) induces significant neurochemical and metabolic alterations, including initial hypermetabolism followed by sustained hypometabolism.
- Chronic metabolic depression post-TBI can impair neuronal function and hinder recovery.
- Glucose supplementation shows promise for improving cognition, especially in impaired populations.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the effects of delayed glucose supplementation on cognitive function following experimental TBI.
- To determine if acute or chronic glucose administration impacts cognitive recovery after TBI.
Main Methods:
- Male Sprague-Dawley rats underwent either sham or lateral fluid-percussion (LFP) injury.
- Cognitive function was assessed using the Morris water maze (MWM) on postinjury days 11-15.
- Experiment 1: Glucose (100mg/kg) or saline administered 10 min before MWM testing.
- Experiment 2: Daily glucose (100mg/kg) or saline injections for 10 days starting 24h post-TBI, followed by MWM testing without treatment.
Main Results:
- In Experiment 1, glucose treatment significantly reduced latency to find the platform in TBI rats compared to saline controls.
- Glucose had no effect on cognitive performance in sham-injured rats.
- In Experiment 2, daily glucose injections for 10 days did not improve MWM performance in TBI rats.
Conclusions:
- Acute glucose administration shortly before cognitive assessment can improve functional outcomes after TBI.
- Chronic, delayed glucose supplementation does not appear to enhance cognitive recovery in this TBI model.
- These findings suggest that the timing of energy supplementation is critical for improving cognitive function post-TBI.
