Date of Award

2022

Degree Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Master of Science (MS)

Department

Neuroscience

Abstract

A common complaint after repetitive mild traumatic brain injury (rmTBI) is vestibular dysfunction, which can become persistent and decrease quality of life. Delayed testosterone treatment has been shown to reduce vestibular impairment and improve neuronal survival in the vestibular nucleus following rmTBI; however, the long-term molecular pathways associated with rmTBI and testosterone treatment remain widely unexplored. We utilized a 5-hit closed-head rodent rmTBI model and administered testosterone 35 days after injury (DPI). The vestibular nuclei were removed and prepared for RT-qPCR and western blotting. Gene expression and protein levels were elevated for markers of oxidative stress (NADPH oxidase 4) and pyroptosis (gasdermin D) up to 63 DPI, and testosterone treatment reduced these elevations. This study provides insight into the temporal profile of molecule sequelae associated with rmTBI and demonstrates the therapeutic efficacy of delayed testosterone treatment in a clinically relevant closed-head model of rmTBI.

Creative Commons License

Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 License.

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Neurosciences Commons

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