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Review
. 2020 Aug 27;10(9):1247.
doi: 10.3390/biom10091247.

Molecular and Therapeutic Aspects of Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy in Neurological Conditions

Inbar Fischer  1 , Boaz Barak  1   2
Affiliations
Review

Molecular and Therapeutic Aspects of Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy in Neurological Conditions

Inbar Fischer et al. Biomolecules. .

Abstract

In hyperbaric oxygen therapy (HBOT), the subject is placed in a chamber containing 100% oxygen gas at a pressure of more than one atmosphere absolute. This treatment is used to hasten tissue recovery and improve its physiological aspects, by providing an increased supply of oxygen to the damaged tissue. In this review, we discuss the consequences of hypoxia, as well as the molecular and physiological processes that occur in subjects exposed to HBOT. We discuss the efficacy of HBOT in treating neurological conditions and neurodevelopmental disorders in both humans and animal models. We summarize by discussing the challenges in this field, and explore future directions that will allow the scientific community to better understand the molecular aspects and applications of HBOT for a wide variety of neurological conditions.

Keywords: angiogenesis; autistic spectrum disorder; cerebral palsy; hyperbaric oxygen therapy; hypoxia; mitochondria; neurodevelopmental disorders; neurological conditions; reactive oxygen stress; traumatic brain injury; white matter.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflict of interests.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Key molecular changes in the brain following hyperbaric oxygen therapy (HBOT). Mitochondrial properties, oxidative stress, myelination processes, angiogenesis, and neuroinflammation are all altered following HBOT.
Figure 2
Figure 2
The beneficial impacts of HBOT on mitochondrial properties. Three key processes related to mitochondria that are affected by HBOT- oxidative stress, cell energy production, and apoptosis.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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