Ipsilateral and contralateral skilled reach training contributes to the motor function and brain recovery after left haemorrhagic stroke of rats.

Primary Objective: The present study investigated the effect of upper limb skilled reach training in the intracerebral haemorrhage (ICH) model of rats.

Methods: Forty-five male Sprague-Dawley rats with body weights of 200-250 g were divided randomly into the control (CON), ipsilateral (IST) and contralateral (CST) groups. All groups had induced ICH injury and were then rested to recover. Skilled reach training was applied on the left anterior paw in the ISP group and on the right paw in the CST group for 4 weeks. Behavioural testing, immunohistochemistry, western blotting and histological analysis were performed to confirm the expressions of neurotrophic factors and apoptosis-related proteins and brain recovery in the ICH rat model.

Results: The increased neurotrophic factors expression in the IST and CST groups decreased the expressions of Bax and Caspase-3, which was enhanced by CST. Moreover, decreased ischemic volume and progressive neurobehavioural outcome were observed in both the IST and CST groups.

Conclusion: Skilled reach training promotes brain recovery and motor function through an increase of neurotrophic factors expression and a decrease of apoptosis-related protein expression.