Low intensity rTMS has sex-dependent effects on the local response of glia following a penetrating cortical stab injury

摘要: Abstract Repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS), a non-invasive form of brain stimulation, has shown experimental and clinical efficacy in range neuromodulatory models, even when delivered at low intensity (i.e. subthreshold for action potential generation). After central nervous system (CNS) injury, studies suggest that reactive astrocytes microglia can have detrimental but also beneficial effects; thus modulating glial activity, example through application rTMS, could potentially be useful therapeutic tool following neurotrauma. Immunohistochemistry was used to measure the effect rTMS (LI-rTMS) on GFAP (astrocyte), IBA1 (microglial), CS56 (proteoglycan) expression unilateral penetrating cortical stab injury model scarring young adult aged male female C57BL6/J mice. Mice received contralateral frequency, ipsilateral high frequency or sham LI-rTMS (4–5 mT intensity), two weeks injury. There no significant difference overall volume tissue containing positive ( + ) astrocytes, microglia, proteoglycan expression, between LI-rTMS-treated mice all ages sex. Importantly however, density immediately adjacent significantly reduced females p  ≤ 0.05), increased males  ≤ 0.05). effects were generally greater magnitude compared These results sex differences need factored into protocols. In particular, more work analyzing specific effects, especially relation age sex, is required determine how best modify reactivity phenotype