Evaluation of the effects of treatment with sAPPα on functional and histological outcome following controlled cortical impact injury in mice

Treatment with sAPPα, the product of non-amyloidogenic processing of the amyloid precursor protein (APP) has been shown to be protective following diffuse traumatic brain injury (TBI), by improving motor outcome and reducing axonal injury. However the effects of treatment with sAPPα following a focal TBI have yet to be determined. To investigate this, mice were subjected to a controlled cortical impact injury and treated with either sAPPα or its vehicle at 30 min post-injury. Following treatment with sAPPα the mice showed a significant improvement in motor and cognitive function early following injury, as determined on the ledged beam and Barnes Maze, respectively, relating to a more rapid rate of recovery. However the effect of treatment with sAPPα was not as dramatic as that seen previously following a diffuse injury. Nonetheless, these improvements in functional outcome were acompanied by a small but significant improvement in the amount of cortical and hippocampal at 7 days post-injury, and provide further support for the efficacy of sAPPα as a potential neuroprotective agent following TBI.

► Following focal traumatic brain injury mice were treated with sAPPα.
► Mice treated with sAPPα had improved motor and cognitive outcome early post-injury.
► They also had a small but significant decrease in cortical and hippocampal damage.