Abstract #3398

Chahboune H, Stewart W, Schwartz M, Rothman D, McGee A, Ment L, Strittmatter S, Hyder F

In vivo DTI has great potential for assessing neurodevelopmental changes. Here we show alterations in morphology of developing axonal pathways in developing mouse brain when exposed to hypoxia. Chronic sublethal hypoxia (<10%) at the 3rd day (P3) after birth (in C57B/L6 mice) for a week provides an injury model which replicates neuropathologic findings that accompany preterm birth. Normoxic and hypoxic mice were studied with DTI through development (P15 to P45). We report that the normal developmental changes in fiber organization of corpus callosum and cingulate are perturbed by hypoxia. These results are supported by histology as well as behavioral assays