Phenomenon of music-induced opening of the blood-brain barrier in healthy mice

Music plays a more important role in our life than just being an entertainment. For example, it can be used as anti-anxiety therapy of human and animals. However, the unsafe listening of loud music triggers hearing loss in millions of young people and professional musicians (rock, jazz, and symphony orchestra) due to exposure to damaging sound levels using personal audio devices or at noisy entertainment venues including nightclubs, discotheques, bars, and concerts. Therefore, it is important to understand how loud music affects us.

In this pioneering study on healthy mice, we discover that loud rock music below the safety threshold causes opening of the blood-brain barrier (OBBB), which plays an vital role in protecting the brain from viruses, bacteria and toxins. We clearly demonstrate that listening loud music during 2 hrs in an intermittent adaptive regime is accompanied by delayed (1h after music exposure) and short-lasting (during 1-4 hrs) OBBB to low and high molecular weight compounds without cochlear and brain impairments. We present the systemic and molecular mechanisms responsible for music-induced OBBB. Finally, a revision of our traditional knowledge about the BBB nature and the novel strategies in optimizing of sound-mediated methods for brain drug delivery are discussed.