Tauroursodeoxycholic acid reduces brain lesion volume and cortical edema in a rat model of Traumatic brain injury

Background: Traumatic brain injury (TBI) continues to be a major cause of death and disability worldwide. Effective treatment options are limited, and randomized clinical data has been futile. Objective: In this study, we assessed the efficacy of tauroursodeoxycholic acid (TUDCA) in treating TBI using a controlled cortical impact injury model in male Wistar rats. Methods: Animals were randomized into two experimental groups: 1) TBI with sham treatment (Control, n = 12) and 2) TBI treated with intravenous infusion of 300 mg/kg TUDCA (TUDCA-treated group, n = 10) 30 min post-injury. Anxiety levels and magnetic resonance imaging studies were performed on days 1 and 7 post-injury. Animals were euthanized on day 7 for histopathological assessments. Results: On days 1 and 7, we observed a smaller brain lesion volume in the TUDCA-treated group compared with the Control group and greater cytotoxic edema on day 1 in the Control group. Elevated plus maze revealed a lower anxiety index for the TUDCA-treated group on day 7. Conclusion: Our study showed that TBI rats treated with TUDCA at a hyperacute stage had a statistically significant reduction in lesion volume and improved levels of anxiety. However, a dose–response relationship and ideal therapeutic window still need to be determined. Future studies should consider a multiday therapy paradigm to identify the optimum intervention frequency in a mixed-gender.