Researcher receives grant to study link between trauma and cell and tissue damage in brain

A researcher at the University of Texas at Arlington received a grant from the Office of Naval Research (ONR) to examine the mechanisms of how explosion-like events cause brain damage.

Ashfaq Adnan, professor of mechanical and aerospace engineering, received a three-year grant of $ 944,845 to study the potential link between blast-like trauma and cell and tissue damage in the brain. By using ultra-fast cameras to capture dynamic events in a simulated brain, he will be able to examine rapid acceleration and deceleration to study what happens during such events.

Previous research has suggested that blast-like trauma has great potential to create cavitation, or bubbles, and cause brain cell damage, with some studies showing their presence inside realistic head models. Adnan wants to follow the entire process of bubble formation, evolution and collapse to observe how it affects brain cells.

“This study will give us the unique opportunity to see bubble formation in realistic scenarios and connect with our previous research to help us understand how to prevent traumatic brain injury,” Adnan said. “Once we understand the pathways to brain damage, we will have more ways to explore the mechanisms of damage and apply our findings to prevention and treatment.

“I would like to especially thank the ONR and Timothy Bentley, program director and deputy of its Force Health Protection program, for their support of our research,” said Adnan.

He will also study the larger configurations of the brain, specifically related to glial cells, which are found alongside neuronal cells and contain building blocks necessary for neuronal cells to function. Adnan suspects that glial cells act as a shield against trauma to neural cells.

Dr. Adnan’s work continues to evolve and provide crucial information on the mechanisms of traumatic brain injury. His leadership and professional discernment have contributed greatly to the collective knowledge in this area, and I look forward to the groundbreaking results of this milestone. “

Erian Armanios, Chairman, Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, University of Texas at Arlington

Adnan purchased the high-speed cameras for the study with a grant from the Defense University Research Instrumentation Program. He has two other ONR grants and a National Institutes of Health sub-grant totaling $ 1.98 million to support his research related to blast-induced traumatic brain injury. His previous research determined that, under certain circumstances, the mechanical forces of explosion-like events can damage the perineuronal network next to neurons, which in turn could damage the neurons themselves.

He and his team simulated a shock wave-induced cavitation collapse in the perineuronal network, which is a specialized extracellular matrix that stabilizes synapses in the brain. The team focused on the damage caused by hyaluronan, which is the main structural component of the net, and showed that localized supersonic forces created by an asymmetric collapse of a bubble can shatter it.