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Effect of Pulsed Electromagnetic Field (PEMF) on Infarct Size and Inflammation After Cerebral Ischemia in Mice

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Abstract

Pulsed electromagnetic fields (PEMF) have been demonstrated to have anti-inflammatory and pro-regenerative effects in animals and humans. We used the FDA-approved Sofpulse™ (Ivivi Health Sciences, LLC) to study effect of PEMF on infarct size and poststroke inflammation following distal middle cerebral artery occlusion (dMCAO) in mice. Electromagnetic field was applied within 30–45 min after ischemic brain damage and utilized twice a day for 21 consecutive days. Ischemic infarct size was assessed using MRI and histological analysis. At 21 days after dMCAO, the infarct size was significantly (by 26 %) smaller in PEMF-treated animals as compared to controls. Neuroinflammation in these animals was evaluated using specialized cytokine/chemokine PCR array. We demonstrate that PEMF significantly influenced expression profile of pro- and anti-inflammatory factors in the hemisphere ipsilateral to ischemic damage. Importantly, expression of gene encoding major pro-inflammatory cytokine IL-1α was significantly reduced, while expression of major anti-inflammatory IL-10 was significantly increased. PEMF application significantly downregulated genes encoding members of the major pro-apoptotic tumor necrosis factor (TNF) superfamily indicating that the treatment could have both anti-inflammatory and anti-apoptotic effects. Both reduction of infarct size and influence on neuroinflammation could have a potentially important positive impact on the poststroke recovery process, implicating PEMF as a possible adjunctive therapy for stroke patients.

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Acknowledgments

This work was supported in part by Ivivi Health Sciences, LLC. We would like to thank Dr. Arthur Pilla for his valuable input and assistance. Microscopy images were generated in the UNM Cancer Center Fluorescence Microscopy Facility supported as detailed on the webpage http://hsc.unm.edu/crtc/microscopy/instru.html. Gene and miRNA analysis was performed in the Keck-UNM Genomics Resource (KUGR) facility and in Qiagen Company.

Conflict of Interest

Juan Carlos Pena-Philippides has no financial interest with the sponsor of the research. Yirong Yang has no financial interest with the sponsor of the research. Olga Bragina has no financial interest with the sponsor of the research. Sean Hagberg has financial interests with Ivivi Health Sciences. Edwin Nemoto has no financial interest with the sponsor of the research. Tamara Roitbak has no financial interest with the sponsor of the research.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Neurosugery, University of New Mexico Health Sciences Center, 1101 Yale Blvd, Albuquerque, NM, 87106-3834, USA

    Juan Carlos Pena-Philippides, Olga Bragina, Edwin Nemoto & Tamara Roitbak

  2. Brain Imaging Center and College of Pharmacy, University of New Mexico, Albuquerque, NM, USA

    Yirong Yang

  3. Rio Grande Neurosciences, LLC, San Francisco, CA, USA

    Sean Hagberg

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  1. Juan Carlos Pena-Philippides
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Correspondence to Tamara Roitbak.

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Pena-Philippides, J.C., Yang, Y., Bragina, O. et al. Effect of Pulsed Electromagnetic Field (PEMF) on Infarct Size and Inflammation After Cerebral Ischemia in Mice. Transl. Stroke Res. 5, 491–500 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12975-014-0334-1

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