Inhibition of the integrated stress response reverses cognitive deficits after traumatic brain injury

Abstract

Traumatic brain injury (TBI) is a leading cause of long-term neurological disability yet the mechanisms underlying the chronic cognitive deficits associated with TBI remain unknown. Consequently, there are no effective treatments for patients suffering from the long-lasting symptoms of TBI. Here, we show that TBI persistently activate the integrated stress response (ISR), a universal intracellular signaling pathway that responds to a variety of cellular conditions and regulates protein translation via phosphorylation of the translation initiation factor eIF2α. Treatment with ISRIB, a potent drug-like small-molecule inhibitor of the ISR, reversed the hippocampal-dependent cognitive deficits induced by TBI in two different injury mouse models—focal contusion and diffuse concussive injury. Surprisingly, ISRIB corrected TBI-induced memory deficits when administered weeks after the initial injury and maintained cognitive improvement after treatment was terminated. At the physiological level, TBI suppressed long-term potentiation in the hippocampus, which was fully restored with ISRIB treatment. Our results indicate that ISR-inhibition at time points late after injury can reverse memory deficits associated with TBI. As such, pharmacological inhibition of the ISR emerges as a promising avenue to combat head trauma induced chronic cognitive deficits.