The effects of blast-induced traumatic brain injury on two transgenic models of Alzheimer's Disease

Abstract

[ACCESS RESTRICTED TO THE UNIVERSITY OF MISSOURI AT REQUEST OF AUTHOR.] Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) is well known to be a risk factor for Alzheimer's Disease (AD). However, the mechanism by which TBI increases the risk of AD is still poorly understood, and research is greatly needed to explain the long-term effects of TBI. In the current study, we examined the long-term effects of a blast-induced mild TBI (mTBI) on two rat models of AD: APP21 (n=7) and APP+PS1 (n=14). We examined differences among genotype, sex, and condition (blast exposure or no blast exposure). Five months after half of the rats were exposed to a low intensity blast, behavioral assessment occurred. We examined spatial learning, memory, anxiety levels, locomotor activity, willingness to explore, and social motivation through a range of assessments. We hypothesized that the APP21 and APP+PS11rats exposed to a low intensity blast will have lower spatial learning skills, poorer memories, and will show more anxious behaviors than the APP21 and APP+PS1 rats that were not exposed to a blast. Our results showed that rats with a mTBI showed significantly more impaired memory and spatial learning skills, but no anxiety differences were found between our mTBI and the control APP21 and APP+PS1 rats.