Grant to help study Vitamin B3 and brain injury relationship

A $132, 525 grant from the Maryland-based National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke will help ECU researchers study the effects of vitamin B3 on brain injury.

Dr. Michael Hoane of the Department of Psychology will lead the study to determine if the vitamin can reduce cognitive and sensory motor, impairments, as well as to determine if the vitamin can reduce injury-induced edema and nerve cell loss following traumatic brain injury. Found naturally in foods like peanuts, fish, meat and whole grains, B3 is thought to help reduce damage if administered shortly after injury.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, about 1.5 million Americans suffer from traumatic brain injury annually. Most injuries are due to car accidents or other sudden blows to the head. Symptoms include a loss of memory, emotional impairments and sensory deprivation. Current treatment is minimal and includes stabilization.

"With human injury, there is no drug that can be routinely given to reduce the extent of damage that occurs," Hoane said.

During the study, researchers at ECUÕs Brain Injury Laboratory will observe rats with various degrees of brain injuries on mazes and platforms designed to test cognitive function and motor skills.

Hoane, lab technician Stacy Akstulewicz and about a dozen undergraduate psychology and neuroscience majors will study the animals with various levels of the vitamin in their system.

One focus of the grant is to determine the window of opportunity for the vitamin's effectiveness. The window for the vitamin is unknown and most experimental treatments need to be administered within seven hours of injury, Hoane said.

"Obviously the sooner you get it in the system, the better, but we have shown that magnesium can be effective when administered as late as 24 hours after injury" Hoane said.

In addition to vitamin B3, vitamin B2 and magnesium will be tested.

The behavior studies can take months to conduct and can cost between $2,000 and $5,000. The grant will help fund several of these studies and also will allow the lab to buy new computers.

Undergraduate researchers will conduct a majority of the tests. This opportunity, Hoane said, will serve as a senior project for many of the students.

The studies will begin this summer.

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