Employees of the Institute of Physical and Chemical Biology named after A. N. Belozersky and the Faculty of Bioengineering and Bioinformatics of the Lomonosov Moscow State University found out that the administration of vitamin B1 to a patient with a traumatic brain injury helps in the restoration of brain functions. The results of the study have been accepted for publication in the journal Shock. Acute traumatic brain injury (TBI) is one of the leading causes of disability among the working population. TBI leads to physical, psychological and cognitive damage, disrupts the function of mitochondria - cell organelles responsible for the oxidation of organic compounds and the use of energy released during their decay for various processes in the body. At the same time, scientists have not yet characterized the mechanisms of mitochondrial dysfunction to the extent that would make it possible to propose effective therapeutic strategies for treating patients with TBI.
CT scan of a patient with brain injury
“In this work, we have shown for the first time that in the mitochondria of the cerebral cortex, traumatic brain injury causes dysfunction of the mitochondrial polyenzyme complex 2-oxoglutarate dehydrogenase (the molecules of this complex accelerate chemical reactions in living organisms). Moreover, we prevented such dysfunction during TBI by introducing vitamin B1 (thiamine), which is a physiological activator of this complex. The results obtained in an animal model indicate that injections of high doses of thiamine in patients with traumatic lesions of the central nervous system may have positive effects on the restoration of brain function, "- explained the authors of the article - a leading researcher of the Department of Biokinetics of the Research Institute of FHB MSU, Doctor of Chemistry Victoria Bunik and postgraduate student of the Faculty of Bioengineering and Bioinformatics of Moscow State University Garik Mkrtchyan.
Scientists carried out their work using an animal model of TBI. They investigated the function of mitochondria using methods of medical enzymology. For many years, the authors have been developing the idea of the leading role of the enzyme 2-oxoglutarate dehydrogenase in brain pathologies. Scientists have already proposed a number of regulators of this enzyme that can be used to correct pathological conditions.
"Since thiamine is a well-known pharmacological drug, we can recommend its administration in traumatic brain injuries as a neuroprotector - a substance that prevents damage to brain cells," the scientists concluded.