Nature Communications· 2026Q1
Endocannabinoid-mediated rescue of somatosensory cortex activity, plasticity and related behaviors following an early-life concussion in male mice
- 1citations
- Q1SCImago
- 2026year
Short summary
A single early-life concussion in male mice leads to lasting increases in somatosensory cortex activity and impaired sensory behavior into adulthood, but this can be rescued by modulating the endocannabinoid system a year post-injury.
AI-generated from the title and abstract; the full text is not read.
Key points
- Early-life concussion in mice causes durable increases in somatosensory cortex neuronal activity.
- This hyperactivity disrupts neuronal integration and impairs sensory-related behaviors in adulthood.
- Modulating the endocannabinoid system a year post-concussion rescues neuronal activity and plasticity.
- Endocannabinoid system intervention normalizes sensory-related behavioral performance.
AI-generated from the title and abstract; the full text is not read.
Abstract
Due to the assumed plasticity of immature brain, early in life brain alterations are thought to lead to better recoveries in comparison to the mature brain. Despite clinical needs, how neuronal networks and associated behaviors are affected by early in life brain stresses, such as pediatric concussions, have been overlooked. Here we provide first evidence in mice that a single early in life concussion durably increases neuronal activity in the somatosensory cortex into adulthood, disrupting neuronal integration while the animal is performing sensory-related tasks. This represents a previously unappreciated clinically relevant mechanism for the impairment of sensory-related behavior performance. Furthermore, we demonstrate that pharmacological modulation of the endocannabinoid system a year post-concussion is well-suited to rescue neuronal activity and plasticity, and to normalize sensory-related behavioral performance, addressing the fundamental question of whether a treatment is still possible once post-concussive symptoms have developed, a time-window compatible with clinical treatment.
The authors' abstract, as published at the source. Nature Communications, 2026 · DOI ↗
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Field: Epidemiology
EpidemiologyMedicine