Early Intervention Improves the Expression of Nerve Growth Factor and Cerebral Function Outcome in Rats

Objective To observe the influence of early intervention on the expression of nerve growth factor (NGF) and functional outcome of hypoxic-ischemic brain damage(HIBD) in rats.Methods 33 HIBD rats were randomly divided into two groups:intervention group and non-intervention group.Intervention group(n=18) received the neonatal handling and was kept in environment rich in stimuli for 28 days.Non-intervention group(n=15) and control group(n=18) were kept in astandard condition without the neonatal handling and such environment.Sensorimotor function tests(beam-walkong test) were used to evaluate the functional outcome of cerebra.NGF levels in the rat visual cortex and hippocampus were determined by an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay(ELISA)method at last.Results The sensorimotor function of non-intervention group(10.47±3.46)s reduced and was lower than those in control group(8.17± 2.48)s(P0.05),while the sensorimotor function of intervention group(8.11±2.89)s was the same as those of control group (P0.05);NGF levels in the prefrontal cortex and in the hippocampus(2052.03±133.25;1481.09±80.95)pg/g in intervention group was higher than those of non-intervention group(1919.55±137.51;1370.89±128.86)pg/g (P0.05);In the hippocampus being slightly lower than that in control group(P0.05) and in the prefrontal cortex was being the same as that in control group(P0.05).There was positive correlation between the results of behavior test and NGF levels in the hippocampus and prefrontal cortex (r hippocampus=0.323,r cortex=0.317,P0.05).Conclusion Early intervention could increase NGF levels of brain and improve the cerebral funtion outcome in HIBD rats.