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Updated: Jul 2, 2026
Detecting Behavioral Deficits in Rats After Traumatic Brain Injury
Published on: January 30, 2018
Serum pNF-H levels in the first six hours after experimental mild traumatic brain injury in rats
E Karesioglu1, H I Cikriklar, V A Durak
1Emergency Medicine Department, Bursa Uludağ University Medical Faculty, Bursa, Turkey. halilcikriklar@uludag.edu.tr.
Objective:
Mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI) cases with a normal CT scanning account for the vast majority of all TBI patients. The aim of this study was to investigate the course of serum Phosphorylated Neurofilament Heavy Chain (pNF-H) levels in the first six hours after trauma in rats in experimental mTBI.
Materials And Methods:
In this experimental animal study, 32 female Sprague-Dawley rats were enrolled equally (n=8) into 3 experimental groups and 1 control group. In experimental groups, animals were exposed to a mTBI with a free fall of 50-gram metal disc from a height of 80 cm. We compared serum pNF-H levels at the 2nd, 4th, and 6th hours after traumatic brain injury in the experimental groups with the control group.
Results:
Serum pNF-H levels at the 2nd and 4th hours after traumatic brain injury were statistically significantly higher than the control group. Serum pNF-H levels gradually decreased at the 4th and 6th hours compared to the 2nd hour and decreased to a similar level to the control group at the 6th hour after injury.
Conclusions:
A high serum pNF-H value, could be used in the diagnosis and management of mTBI patients.
