Effects of rTMS on Brain Injury Induced by Cranial Irradiation in Mice

Cranial radiotherapy often causes radiation-induced brain injury (RBI), which is a common complication without effective treatment. Repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) is a novel brain stimulation method, which has been widely used in neurological diseases. The study aims to clarify the effects of rTMS on RBI induced by cranial irradiation. The results indicated that rTMS could mitigate the damage of spatial learning and memory ability, promoted the recovery of hippocampal morphology damage and cell apoptosis induced by irradiation. In addition, rTMS promoted hippocampal neurogenesis and improved the protein level of BDNF, p-TrkB and p-CREB in hippocampus. In conclusion, rTMS could prevent and rescue brain damage caused by cranial X-ray irradiation, and BDNF-TrkB-CREB signaling pathway may be involved in it.