Postnatal Neural Stem Cells in Treating Traumatic Brain Injury

Traumatic brain injury (TBI) is one of the leading causes of death and disabilities worldwide. It affects approximately 1.5 million people each year and is associated with severe post-TBI symptoms such as sensory and motor deficits. Several neuro-therapeutic approaches ranging from cell therapy interventions such as the use of neural stem cells (NSCs) to drug-based therapies have been proposed for TBI management. Successful cell-based therapies are tightly dependent on reproducible preclinical animal models to ensure safety and optimal therapeutic benefits. In this chapter, we describe the isolation of NSCs from neonatal mouse brain using the neurosphere assay in culture. Subsequently, dissociated neurosphere-derived cells are used for transplantation into the ipsilateral cortex of a controlled cortical impact (CCI) TBI model in C57BL/6 mice. Following intra-cardiac perfusion and brain removal, the success of NSC transplantation is then evaluated using immunofluorescence in order to assess neurogenesis along with gliosis in the ipsilateral coronal brain sections. Behavioral tests including rotarod and pole climbing are conducted to evaluate the motor activity post-treatment intervention.