Eric G. Blackman

INTRODUCTION: Repetitive head impacts (RHI) sustained in contact sports are thought to be necessary for the long-term development of chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE). Our objectives were to: 1) characterize the magnitude and persistence of RHI-induced white matter (WM) changes; 2) determine their relationship to kinematic measures of RHI; and 3) explore their clinical relevance. METHODS: Prospective, observational study of 10 Division III college football players and 5 non-athlete controls during the 2011-12 season. All subjects underwent diffusion tensor imaging (DTI), physiologic, cognitive, and balance testing at pre-season (Time 1), post-season (Time 2), and after 6-months of no-contact rest (Time 3). Head impact measures were recorded using helmet-mounted accelerometers. The percentage of whole-brain WM voxels with significant changes in fractional anisotropy (FA) and mean diffusivity (MD) from Time 1 to 2, and Time 1 to 3 was determined for each subject and correlated to head impacts and clinical measures. RESULTS: Total head impacts for the season ranged from 431-1,850. No athlete suffered a clinically evident concussion. Compared to controls, athletes experienced greater changes in FA and MD from Time 1 to 2 as well as Time 1 to 3; most differences at Time 2 persisted to Time 3. Among athletes, the percentage of voxels with decreased FA from Time 1 to 2 was positively correlated with several helmet impact measures. The persistence of WM changes from Time 1 to 3 was also associated with changes in serum ApoA1 and S100B autoantibodies. WM changes were not consistently associated with cognition or balance. CONCLUSIONS: A single football season of RHIs without clinically-evident concussion resulted in WM changes that correlated with multiple helmet impact measures and persisted following 6 months of no-contact rest. This lack of WM recovery could potentially contribute to cumulative WM changes with subsequent RHI exposures.

The acknowledgement of risks for traumatic brain injury in American football players has prompted studies for sideline concussion diagnosis and testing for neurological deficits. While concussions are recognized etiological factors for a spectrum of neurological sequelae, the consequences of sub-concussive events are unclear. We tested the hypothesis that blood-brain barrier disruption (BBBD) and the accompanying surge of the astrocytic protein S100B in blood may cause an immune response associated with production of auto-antibodies. We also wished to determine whether these events result in disrupted white matter on diffusion tensor imaging (DT) scans. Players from three college football teams were enrolled (total of 67 volunteers). None of the players experienced a concussion. Blood samples were collected before and after games (n = 57); the number of head hits in all players was monitored by movie review and post-game interviews. S100B serum levels and auto-antibodies against S100B were measured and correlated by direct and reverse immunoassays (n = 15 players; 5 games). A subset of players underwent DTI scans pre- and post-season and after a 6-month interval (n = 10). Cognitive and functional assessments were also performed. After a game, transient BBB damage measured by serum S100B was detected only in players experiencing the greatest number of sub-concussive head hits. Elevated levels of auto-antibodies against S100B were elevated only after repeated sub-concussive events characterized by BBBD. Serum levels of S100B auto-antibodies also predicted persistence of MRI-DTI abnormalities which in turn correlated with cognitive changes. Even in the absence of concussion, football players may experience repeated BBBD and serum surges of the potential auto-antigen S100B. The correlation of serum S100B, auto-antibodies and DTI changes support a link between repeated BBBD and future risk for cognitive changes.

Traumatic brain injury (TBI) has become a signature injury of current military conflicts, with debilitating, costly, and long-lasting effects. Although mechanisms by which head impacts cause TBI have been well researched, the mechanisms by which blasts cause TBI are not understood. From numerical hydrodynamic simulations, we have discovered that nonlethal blasts can induce sufficient skull flexure to generate potentially damaging loads in the brain, even without a head impact. The possibility that this mechanism may contribute to TBI has implications for injury diagnosis and armor design.

A significant fraction of planetary nebulae (PNe) and protoplanetary nebulae (PPNe) exhibit aspherical, axisymmetric structures, many of which are highly collimated. The origin of these structures is not entirely understood, however, recent evidence suggests that many observed PNe harbour binary systems, which may play a role in their shaping. In an effort to understand how binaries may produce such asymmetries, we study the effect of low-mass (<0.3 M⊙) companions (planets, brown dwarfs and low-mass main-sequence stars) embedded into the envelope of a 3.0-M⊙ star during three epochs of its evolution [red giant branch, asymptotic giant branch (AGB), interpulse AGB]. We find that common envelope evolution can lead to three qualitatively different consequences: (i) direct ejection of envelope material resulting in a predominately equatorial outflow, (ii) spin-up of the envelope resulting in the possibility of powering an explosive dynamo-driven jet and (iii) tidal shredding of the companion into a disc which facilitates a disc-driven jet. We study how these features depend on the secondary's mass and discuss observational consequences.

(accepted to ApJ) We consider the backreaction of the magnetic field on the magnetic dynamo coefficients and the role of boundary conditions in interpreting whether numerical evidence for suppression is dynamical. If a uniform field in a periodic box serves as the initial condition for modeling the backreaction on the turbulent EMF, then the magnitude of the turbulent EMF and thus the dynamo coefficient α, have a stringent upper limit that depends on the magnetic Reynolds number RM to a power of order −1. This is not a dynamic suppression but results just because of the imposed boundary conditions. In contrast, when mean field gradients are allowed within the simulation region, or non-periodic boundary are used, the upper limit is independent of RM and takes its kinematic value. Thus only for simulations of the latter types could a measured suppression be the result of a dynamic backreaction. This is fundamental for understanding a long-standing controversy surrounding α suppression. Numerical simulations which do not allow any field gradients and invoke periodic boundary conditions appear to show a strong α suppression (e.g. Cattaneo &amp;amp; Hughes 1996). Simulations of accretion discs which allow field gradients and allow free boundary conditions (Brandenburg &amp;amp; Donner 1997) suggest a dynamo α which is not suppressed by a power of RM. Our results are consistent with both types of simulations.