Lack of Oxygen, Not Blood Flow, Delays Brain Maturation in Preterm Infants

Premature infants are at risk for a broad spectrum of life-long cognitive and learning disabilities. Historically, these conditions were believed to be the result of lack of blood flow to the brain. Now a new study finds that major disturbances are actually caused by low oxygen.

Premature infant in incubator. Image credit: Zerbey/Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 3.0)

Previously, it was believed that lack of blood flow was causing preterm brain cells to die. Instead, these critically important cells simply fail to develop normally. This finding creates an opportunity to determine ways to restore oxygen loss and potentially reduce life-long impacts of preterm survivors.

Premature infants are at risk for a broad spectrum of life-long cognitive and learning disabilities. Historically, these conditions were believed to be the result of lack of blood flow to the brain. However, a new study at OHSU School of Medicine, OHSU Doernbecher, finds that while limited blood flow may contribute, major disturbances are actually caused by low oxygen.

Utilizing a preterm sheep model, the team analyzed the response of fetal subplate neurons -- cells that play a critical role in regulating preterm brain function and connectivity -- to disturbances of brain oxygenation.

When the developing brain was exposed to lower than normal rates of oxygen for as short as 25 minutes, subplate neurons showed major long-term disturbances just one month following exposure.

This brief exposure to low oxygen occurs frequently in preterm babies receiving care in a neonatal intensive care unit. And this result better explains the long-term complications that these preterm babies sustain as they grow older, which include significant challenges with learning, memory and attention.

Although additional research is needed to determine the exact developmental timeframes for potential injury due to oxygen loss in infants, as well as the optimal concentration of oxygen necessary for early intervention therapies, these findings suggest a need to re-evaluate current practices in intensive care settings. (Tasnim News Agency)

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