Abstract: Objective To investigate the expression of NF-κB in different post-traumatic intervals and severity of brain injury. Methods Fifty-four brain tissue samples of slight (n=24), moderate(n=24) brain injury, sham(n=3) and control (n=3) of rat were examined by immunohistochemical staining, westernblot and RT-PCR. Results Up-regulating of NF-κB expression was found in tissues from traumatic brain injury compared with controls in early 1 hour after TBI, and reached peak at 24h and 48h and disappeared after 7 days. The expression of NF-κB mRNA has association with contusion severity. Conclusion NF-κB may benefit to the estimation of posttraumatic intervals of brain injury.

Key words: cerebral contusion, NF-κB, severity, posttraumatic intervals, apoptosis