Abstract
Objectives: Administration of sodium selenate to rats given traumatic brain injury (TBI) attenuates brain damage and improves long-term behavioural outcomes. We have previously provided evidence that TBI causes bone loss in rats, however the effect of sodium selenate treatment on bone quantity following TBI is unknown. Methods: Rats were randomly assigned into sham injury or fluid percussion injury (FPI) groups and administered saline or sodium selenate for 12 weeks post-injury. Femora were analysed using histomorphometry, peripheral quantitative computed tomography (pQCT) and biomechanical testing. Results: Distal metaphyseal trabecular bone volume fraction of FPI-selenate rats was higher than FPI-vehicle rats (41.8%; p<0.01), however, femora from selenate-treated groups were shorter in length (4.3%; p<0.01) and had increased growth plate width (22.1%; p<0.01), indicating that selenate impaired long bone growth. pQCT analysis demonstrated that distal metaphyseal cortical thickness was decreased in TBI rats compared to shams (11.7%; p<0.05), however selenate treatment to TBI animals offset this reduction (p<0.05). At the midshaft we observed no differences in biomechanical measures. Conclusion: These are the first findings to indicate that mitigating TBI-induced neuropathology may have the added benefit of preventing osteoporosis and associated fracture risk following TBI.
Original language | English |
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Pages (from-to) | 369-376 |
Number of pages | 8 |
Journal | Journal of Musculoskeletal Neuronal Interactions |
Volume | 16 |
Issue number | 4 |
Publication status | Published - 1 Dec 2016 |
Externally published | Yes |
Keywords
- Bone growth
- Bone Metabolism
- Endochondral ossification
- Neurotrauma
- Osteoporosis