Abstract: Objective To explore the effect of butylphthalide on the brain edema of rats following traumatic brain injury and the expression of p38MAPK around the injury area. Methods 144 Sprague-Dawley male rats were divided into sham group,control group and butylphthalide group(40mg/kg,once a day). The model was made by Marmarou method. After injury 1,2,7,14d,behavior scores were done to observe the changes of neuromotor function,brain water content was measured to observe the changes of the brain edema,the immunohistochemistry and western blot were done to look the expression of p38MAPK around the injury area. Results Compared with the sham group,the behavior scores of control group were decreased,the brain water content of the control group was more,the content of p38MAPK around the injury area was increased( P <0. 05 ). Compared with the control group,the behavior scores of butylphthalide group were increased,the brain water content of the butylphthalide group was less,the content of p38MAPK around the injury area of butylphthalide group was decreased( P <0. 05 ). Conclusion Butylphthalide could reduce the expression of p38 MAPK following traumatic brain injury and reduce the brain edema.

Key words: brain injury, brain edema, p38 mitogen-activated protein kinases, butylphthalide