Stab-Wound Mouse Model for Studying Hemorrhage and Inflammation in Traumatic Brain Injury

Traumatic brain injury (TBI) results from physical damage, often caused by accidents or sports-related incidents. The causes of TBI are diverse, including concussions, brain contusions, hematomas, and skull fractures. To replicate these different causes, various TBI mouse models have been developed using distinct protocols. Physical brain injury leads to both primary and secondary brain injuries, which exacerbate neuronal loss. Primary injury occurs immediately after the damage, often due to hemorrhage, and subsequently triggers secondary injuries, including inflammation around the lesion. Developing a TBI model suitable for assessing hemorrhage extension and inflammatory severity is therefore crucial. This protocol introduces a method for mimicking penetrating brain injury, referred to as the stab-wound TBI mouse model, to study mechanisms of hemorrhage, inflammation, and neuronal loss associated with TBI pathology. This model is created by puncturing the skull and brain with needles and is simple to execute without the need for specialized experimental equipment. Additionally, the minor injury inflicted on the mouse cerebral cortex using a needle does not affect the animal's behavior post-surgery. This feature allows researchers to study the localized effects of brain injury without concerns about broader behavioral consequences. Sample data from stab-wounded mouse cerebral cortices demonstrate the model's effectiveness in assessing blood leakage into the parenchyma, glial activation, and inflammatory cytokine production. Furthermore, this protocol facilitates the evaluation of blood coagulants and anti-inflammatory compounds, aiding in the development of therapeutic agents for TBI.