Researchers from the University of Helsinki and Taiwan have discovered a new way to remove waste from the brain after a hemorrhage.
Intracerebral hemorrhage, bleeding into the brain tissue, is a devastating neurological condition that affects millions of people annually. It has a high mortality rate, while the survivors suffer long-term neurological deficits. No medication has been found to support brain recovery after hemorrhage.
In an international collaboration, researchers from the University of Helsinki’s Brain Repair Laboratory, along with their Taiwanese colleagues, investigated whether a protein called cerebral dopamine neurotrophic factor (CDNF) has potential as a treatment for brain hemorrhage.
The researchers suggest that cerebral dopamine neurotrophic factor, a protein currently being tested for the treatment of Parkinson’s disease, also has therapeutic effects and enhances the response of immune cells after a brain hemorrhage.
The authors found that administration of cerebral dopamine neurotrophic factor accelerated hemorrhagic lesion resolution, reduced brain swelling, and improved functional outcomes in an animal model of brain hemorrhage.
Surprisingly, we found that BDNF acts on immune cells in the hemorrhagic brain, by increasing anti-intrinsic mediators and suppressing the production of pro-intrinsic cytokines responsible for cell signaling. This is an important step towards treating brain hemorrhage injuries, for which there is currently no cure.”
Miko Iravara, Professor, University of Helsinki
Dr. Vassilios Stratolias of the Brain Repair Laboratory commented, “It is interesting to note that after a bleeding episode, the brain contains a lot of waste and debris. Brain dopamine neurotrophic factor encourages immune cells in the brain to devour and remove waste and debris, which is essential for brain recovery !
Administration of cerebral dopamine neurotrophic factor also alleviated cell stress in the area surrounding the hematoma.
Finally, the authors show that systemic administration of cerebral dopamine neurotrophic factor promotes clearance of brain immune cells after brain hemorrhage and has beneficial effects in an animal model of brain hemorrhage.
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Journal reference:
Zeng, K.-Y. , et al. (2023). Increasing the hematoma clearance capacity of innate immune cells by CDNF reduces brain injury and enhances functional recovery after intracerebral hemorrhage. Cell death and disease. doi.org/10.1038/s41419-022-05520-2
