Efficacy of Cerebrolysin as Treatment for the Functional Recovery of Sprague Dawley Rats with Closed Head Injury

Traumatic brain injury (TBI) is a major cause of death and disability globally; however, effective treatment options are notably lacking at the local level. Cerebrolysin, a neuropeptide medication recognized for its neuroprotective and neurotrophic properties, provides several benefits to the brain. Research has shown that Cerebrolysin significantly improves functional recovery in rats with mild TBI. Although no studies have been published on its effects on TBI in the Philippines. In this study, 20 Sprague Dawley rats were subjected to blunt TBI using a modified fluid percussion model. The rats were treated with cerebrolysin to evaluate the immediate clinical improvements in their motor strength and the neuropathological changes such as traumatic axonal injuries, astrogliosis, and neuroinflammation in their brain. The rats were divided into two groups – one group (n = 10) received daily doses of Cerebrolysin for 7 d, and the other (n = 10) received normal saline. Motor strength was evaluated daily for seven days using Kondziela’s inverted screen test. After 1 wk, the rats were sacrificed, and their brains were collected for histopathological examination. Seven days after the injury, there was a significant improvement in their motor strength from Day 4 to 7 post-trauma – with p-values of 0.009, 0.003, 0.0000014, and 0.000090, respectively. However, histological analysis using the three parameters revealed no statistical differences between the two groups. Nevertheless, Cerebrolysin demonstrated significant clinical improvement in the functional strength of the rats after at least 7 d of administration. These encouraging results indicate that Cerebrolysin could be an effective treatment for enhancing recovery in patients with closed head injuries.