Neonatal Biomarkers of Brain Injury

Several biomarkers of neonatal brain injury have already been investigated, including proteins that indicate blood brain barrier integrity and neuroinflammation, as well as axonal, neuronal, and astroglial damage. This review will provide insight on potential biomarkers for the most common brain injury in newborns such as intraventricular hemorrhage, posthemorrhagic ventricular dilation, periventricular leukomalacia, and hypoxic ischemic encephalopathy. The description of biomarkers includes source, specificity, and underlying physiologic mechanism of release. Some of the most promising biomarkers for intraventricular hemorrhage are S100β and Activin. Posthemorrhagic ventricular dilation biomarkers like transforming growth factor-β1, matrix metalloproteinase-9, and plasminogen activator inhibitor-1 could be used to discriminate neonates who will require ventricular peritoneal shunt. Biomarkers of neonatal hypoxic ischemic encephalopathy with good potential clinical applications include neuron-specific enolase, glial fibrillary acidic protein, brain-derived neurotrophic factor, and S100β.