Supportive enriched environment improves recovery from persistent motor and cognitive impairments after severe traumatic brain injury.

ABSTRACT:

Objective

Severe traumatic brain injury (sTBI) causes permanent disability in adults worldwide. While enriched environments (EE) have been shown to improve recovery in the early post-TBI period, their efficacy during the chronic phase of sTBI remains unclear. This study evaluated neurological function recovery in mice with chronic sTBI housed in either traditional EE or supportive EE.

Methods

Adult male C57BL mice were subjected to sTBI by controlled cortical impact and maintained in standard environments (SE) for 7 months. sTBI mice were then randomized into SE (TBI-SE), traditional EE (TBI-EE-1), or supportive EE (TBI-EE-2, co-housed with sham mice). Sham controls were housed in SE (Sham-SE) or supportive EE (Sham-EE-2). EE consisted of a large stainless-steel cage with to

SUBMITTER: Lovier MA 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12833053 | biostudies-literature | 2025

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature