Researchers have found a two-way link between traumatic brain injury (TBI) and intestinal changes. These interactions may contribute to increased infections in affected patients, and may also worsen chronic brain damage. The study Scientists from the University of Maryland School of Medicine performed an experiment wherein they examined mice that received an experimental traumatic brain injury (TBI). They found that the intestine wall of the colon became more permeable after trauma, changes that were sustained over the following month. However, it is not clear how TBI caused these changes in the gut.
Researchers also focused on the two-way nature of the process: how gut dysfunction may worsen brain inflammation and tissue loss after TBI. They infected mice with Citrobacter rodentinum , a species of bacteria that is the rodent equivalent of E. coli. In mice with TBI who were infected…
