Dietary strategy to repair plasma membrane after brain trauma: Implications for plasticity and cognition

This 2014 study was designed to test the effectiveness of noninvasive interventions in reversing the damages caused by traumatic brain injuries to docosahexaenoic acid and the phospholipid. Since dietary docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) usually provides protection against traumatic brain injury (TBI), it is important to preserve DHA in the brain for optimal functional recovery. Wu et al. kept rats on curcumin and/or DHA-enriched diets for 2 weeks following brain injury. The fluid percussion injury reduced DHA levels and the number of enzymes involved in DHA metabolism, and increased the concentrations of lipid peroxidation markers. DHA or curcumin counteracted these effects, while a more marked impact was seen on DHA and one of the lipid peroxidation markers after the intake of the combined curcumin and DHA diet. The curcumin-DHA combination also reversed reductions in the plasticity markers, brain-derived neurotrophic factor, and learning ability, which had all been negatively influenced by the traumatic brain injury. In conclusion, curcumin complements DHA’s actions on traumatic brain injury pathology, and this combination diet may be a promising intervention for counteracting the neuronal impairments suffered after traumatic brain injury and stimulating functional recovery. [NPID: trauma, docosahexaenoic acid, phospholipids, DHA, traumatic brain injury, curcumin, brain-derived neurotrophic factor, BDNF]

Year: 2014

Reference: Wu, A., Ying, Z., & Gomez-Pinilla, F. (2014). Dietary strategy to repair plasma membrane after brain trauma: implications for plasticity and cognition. Neurorehabilitation and neural repair, 28(1), 75–84. https://doi.org/10.1177/1545968313498650

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