Hydrogen Gas Reduces Brain Damage After Head Injury in Rats
Attenuation of diffuse axonal injury by intraperitoneal injection of hydrogen via reducing oxidative stress in rats
Research hubs: Brain & Nervous System
This research was done in animals. Results in animals often don't carry over to people.
- Evidence type
- Animal study (rat)
- Authors
- Xu-Dong Ma, Jin-Ning Song, Bin-Fei Zhang, Yong-Lin Zhao, Peng Sun, Dan-Dong Li, Ya-Hui Zhao, Zun-Wei Liu
- Journal
- Journal of Xi'an Jiaotong University - Medical Sciences
- Year
- 2014
- Study Type
- Rat
- Participants
- 118
- Delivery
- Gas
- Dose
- 10 mL/kg hydrogen gas injected intraperitoneally twice per day
- Duration
- 1 weeks
- Outcome
- Positive
- Peer Reviewed
- Yes
- Country
- China
TL;DR
Hydrogen gas treatment reduces brain damage in rats with traumatic brain injuries by fighting oxidative stress.
Key Finding
Hydrogen gas treatment significantly reduced brain damage and improved neurological function in rats with diffuse axonal injury by enhancing antioxidant enzyme activity and reducing free radical damage.
Summary
Researchers gave rats a type of brain injury by spinning their heads rapidly, then treated some rats with hydrogen gas injected into their abdomen twice daily. They found that the hydrogen treatment reduced markers of cell damage and improved neurological function compared to untreated injured rats. The improvement appeared to work by boosting the brain's natural antioxidant defenses (enzymes that protect cells from damage) and reducing harmful free radicals (unstable molecules that damage cells).
Practical Takeaway
This rat study suggests hydrogen gas may help protect the brain after traumatic injury by reducing oxidative stress, but these results cannot yet be applied to humans. Much more research, including human trials, would be needed before hydrogen could be considered a treatment for brain injury. The study's relevance to hydrogen water consumption (rather than direct gas injection) is unclear.
Abstract (excerpt)
To investigate the role of oxidative stress in diffuse axonal injury (DAI) and the therapeutic action of hydrogen in DAI models. Methods Totally 118 adult male SD rats were divided into 3 groups with 39 in each: sham, DAI, and DAI + hydrogen treatment. Rat diffuse axonal injury was induced…