Efficacy of a music-based intervention in a preclinical model of traumatic brain injury: An initial foray into a novel and non-pharmacological rehabilitative therapy

Traumatic brain injury (TBI) causes neurobehavioral and cognitive impairments that negatively impact life quality for millions of individuals. Because of its pernicious effects, numerous pharmacological interventions have been evaluated to attenuate the TBI-induced deficits or to reinstate function. While many such pharmacotherapies have conferred benefits in the laboratory, successful translation to the clinic has yet to be achieved. Given the individual, medical, and societal burden of TBI, there is an urgent need for alternative approaches to attenuate TBI sequelae and promote recovery. Music based interventions (MBIs) may hold untapped potential for improving neurobehavioral and cognitive recovery after TBI as data in normal, non-TBI, rats show plasticity and augmented cognition. Hence, the aim of this study was to test the hypothesis that providing a MBI to adult rats after TBI would improve cognition, neurobehavior, and histological endpoints. Adult male rats received a moderate-to-severe controlled cortical impact injury (2.8 mm impact at 4 m/s) or sham surgery (n = 10–12 per group) and 24 h later were randomized to classical Music or No Music (i.e., ambient room noise) for 3 h/day from 19:00 to 22:00 h for 30 days (last day of behavior). Motor (beam-walk), cognitive (acquisition of spatial learning and memory), anxiety-like behavior (open field), coping (shock probe defensive burying), as well as histopathology (lesion volume), neuroplasticity (BDNF), and neuroinflammation (Iba1, and CD163) were assessed. The data showed that the MBI improved motor, cognitive, and anxiety-like behavior vs. No Music (p's < 0.05). Music also reduced cortical lesion volume and activated microglia but increased resting microglia and hippocampal BDNF expression. These findings support the hypothesis and provide a compelling impetus for additional preclinical studies utilizing MBIs as a potential efficacious rehabilitative therapy for TBI.