Dual-modal metabolic analysis reveals hypothermia-reversible uncoupling of oxidative phosphorylation in neonatal brain hypoxia-ischemia.

ABSTRACT: Hypoxia-ischemia (HI), which disrupts the oxygen supply-demand balance in the brain by impairing blood oxygen supply and the cerebral metabolic rate of oxygen (CMRO₂), is a leading cause of neonatal brain injury. However, it is unclear how post-HI hypothermia helps to restore the balance, as cooling reduces CMRO₂. Also, how transient HI leads to secondary energy failure (SEF) in neonatal brains remains elusive. Using photoacoustic microscopy, we examined the effects of HI on CMRO₂ in awake 10-day-old mice, supplemented by bioenergetic analysis of purified cortical mitochondria. Our results show that while HI suppresses ipsilateral CMRO₂, it sparks a prolonged CMRO₂-surge post-HI, associated with increased mitochondrial oxygen consumpti

SUBMITTER: Sun N 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12621700 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Sep

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature