New Delhi, Feb 27 A nasal spray being developed to target brain inflammation can also prove effective in treating traumatic brain injury (TBI) -- a leading cause of death and disability, according to a study.
In a mice model, researchers from the Mass General Brigham in the US found that the spray could reduce damage to the central nervous system and behavioural deficits.
The research suggests a potential therapeutic approach for TBI and other acute forms of brain injury.
Lead author Saef Izzy, neurologist and head of the Immunology of Brain Injury Programme at Brigham and Women’s Hospital (BWH), said that TBI includes cognitive decline and “chronic inflammation is one of the key reasons”.
“Currently, there is no treatment to prevent the long-term effects of traumatic brain injury,” Izzy added.
The team examined the monoclonal antibody Foralumab, developed by UK-based Tiziana, which has been tested in clinical trials for patients with multiple sclerosis, Alzheimer’s disease, and other conditions.
The team conducted multiple experiments in mouse models with moderate-to-severe TBI to explore the communication between regulatory cells induced by the nasal treatment and the microglial immune cells in the brain.
They could identify how these modulate the immune response, which led to “improved neurological outcomes, including less anxiety, cognitive decline, and improved motor skills,” Izzy said. The results are published in the journal Nature Neuroscience.
The findings show that Foralumab may also work “in intracerebral haemorrhage and other stroke patients with brain injury”, said the researchers.
“Our patients with traumatic brain injury still don’t have an effective therapeutic to improve their outcomes, so this is a very promising and exciting time to move forward with something that’s backed up with solid science and get it to patients’ bedsides,” said Izzy.
The next step in the research is to translate the findings from preclinical models to human patients, said the team.
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