Abstract: Objective To explore the effect of butylphthalide on the brain edema of rats following traumatic brain injury and the expression of cortical matrix metalloproteinase-9( MMP-9 )and occludin around the injury area. Methods One hundred and forty Sprague-Dawley male rats were divided into control group and butylphthalide group(40mg/kg,once a day). The model was made by Marmarou method. After injury 6h,12h,24h,72h and 144h,brain water content was measured to observe the changes of the brain edema,the immunohistochemistry and Western blot were used to observe the expression of MMP-9 and occludin around the injury area. Results Compared with the control group,the brain water content of the butylphthalide group was less,the content of MMP-9 around the injury area decreased significantly( P﹤0. 05 ). And the content of occludin around the injury area increased( P﹤0. 05 ). Conclusion Butylphthalide could reduce the expression of MMP-9 following traumatic brain injury,increase the expression of MMP-9,and reduce the brain edema.

Key words: brain injuries, brain edema, matrix metalloproteinase 9, butylphthalide