'Leaky' brain barrier revealed as driver of chronic brain damage in retired combat and collision sports athletes

Research, led by teams at Trinity College Dublin and the FutureNeuro Research Ireland Center, has pinpointed the mechanism linking some sports injuries to poor brain health in retired athletes. The research, published in Science Translational Medicine, has identified a breakdown in the blood-brain barrier (BBB) as the key link between repetitive head injuries (RHIs) and long-term brain health issues in this cohort.