The evolution of traumatic brain injury in a rat focal contusion model

L. Christine Turtzo*, Matthew D. Budde, Eric M. Gold, Bobbi K. Lewis, Lindsay Janes, Angela Yarnell, Neil E. Grunberg, William Watson, Joseph A. Frank

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

28 Scopus citations

Abstract

Serial MRI facilitates the in vivo analysis of the intra- and intersubject evolution of traumatic brain injury lesions. Despite the availability of MRI, the natural history of experimental focal contusion lesions in the controlled cortical impact (CCI) rat model has not been well described. We performed CCI on rats and MRI during the acute to chronic stages of cerebral injury to investigate the time course of changes in the brain. Female Wistar rats underwent CCI of their left motor cortex with a flat impact tip driven by an electromagnetic piston. In vivo MRI was performed at 7T serially over 6weeks post-CCI. The appearances of CCI-induced lesions and lesion-associated cortical volumes were variable on MRI, with the percentage change in cortical volume of the CCI ipsilateral side relative to the contralateral side ranging from 18% within 2h of injury on day 0 to a peak of 35% on day 1, and a trough of -28% by week 5/6, with an average standard deviation of ±14% at any given time point. In contrast, the percentage change in cortical volume of the ipsilateral side relative to the contralateral side in control rats was not significant (1±2%). Hemorrhagic conversion within and surrounding the CCI lesion occurred between days 2 and 9 in 45% of rats, with no hemorrhage noted on the initial scan. Furthermore, hemorrhage and hemosiderin within the lesion were positive for Prussian blue and highly autofluorescent on histological examination. Although some variation in injuries may be technique related, the divergence of similar lesions between initial and final scans demonstrates the inherent biological variability of the CCI rat model. Published 2012. This article is a US Government work and is in the public domain in the USA.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Pages (from-to)468-479
Number of pages12
JournalNMR in Biomedicine
Volume26
Issue number4
DOIs
StatePublished - Apr 2013

Funding

Keywords

  • Autofluorescence
  • Controlled cortical impact
  • Hemorrhage
  • MRI
  • Traumatic brain injury

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Molecular Medicine
  • Radiology Nuclear Medicine and imaging
  • Spectroscopy

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