Shear forces during blast, not abrupt changes in pressure alone, generate calcium activity in human brain cells

• Published in: PloS one 2012-06, Vol.7 (6), p.e39421-e39421
• Main Authors: Ravin, Rea, Blank, Paul S, Steinkamp, Alex, Rappaport, Shay M, Ravin, Nitay, Bezrukov, Ludmila, Guerrero-Cazares, Hugo, Quinones-Hinojosa, Alfredo, Bezrukov, Sergey M, Zimmerberg, Joshua
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Biology; Brain; Brain - metabolism; Brain - pathology; Brain injuries; Brain research; Calcium; Calcium - metabolism; Cell surface; Cell survival; Cells, Cultured; Central nervous system; Childrens health; Engineering; Explosions; Fluorescence; Fluorescence microscopy; Head injuries; Health sciences; Humans; International conferences; Medicine; Microscopy; Neurosciences; Neurosurgery; Permeability; Physics; Pressure; Rheology; Shear; Shear Strength; Shear stress; Shear stresses; Shock waves; Studies; Trauma; Traumatic brain injury; Ultrasonic imaging
• ISSN: 1932-6203; 1932-6203
• DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0039421

Blast-Induced Traumatic Brain Injury (bTBI) describes a spectrum of injuries caused by an explosive force that results in changes in brain function. The mechanism responsible for primary bTBI following a blast shockwave remains unknown. We have developed a pneumatic device that delivers shockwaves, similar to those known to induce bTBI, within a chamber optimal for fluorescence microscopy. Abrupt changes in pressure can be created with and without the presence of shear forces at the surface of cells. In primary cultures of human central nervous system cells, the cellular calcium response to shockwaves alone was negligible. Even when the applied pressure reached 15 atm, there was no damage or excitation, unless concomitant shear forces, peaking between 0.3 to 0.7 Pa, were present at the cell surface. The probability of cellular injury in response to a shockwave was low and cell survival was unaffected 20 hours after shockwave exposure.