Abstract:Objective:To study the influence of different ages on expression of Bcl2 and Bax protein in the contusive brain tissues after traumatic brain injury (TBI), so as to probe into the molecular mechanism of the age influence on the prognosis of TBI patients. Methods: The expression of Bcl2 and Bax protein in contusive and lacerated brain tissue ( within 3 h to 9 h after trauma) in aged group (≥ 60 years), adult group (1959 years) and nonadult group (≤18 years) was analyzed and compared by immunohistochemistry method and computer micrograph analysis. The temporal lobe samples of 15 patients with temporal epilepsy or vascular deformity were taken as control. Results: The expression of NGF, Bcl2 and Bax protein in the contusive and lacerated brain tissue was higher in the 3 TBI groups than that in the control group. The ratio of Bcl2/Bax expression in aged group was significantly lower than those in the adult and nonadult groups (P<0.05); and the ratio of Bcl2/Bax expression in the adult group was significantly lower than that in the nonadult group (P<0.05). Conclusion: The expression of Bcl2 and Bax protein after TBI is influenced by the age of sufferers; the decrease of Bcl2/Bax ratio might be associated with the neurological deficits after TBI in aged patients and the higher ratio of Bcl2/Bax might be associated with the better prognosis of TBI in nonadult patients.