Insulin-like growth factor II stimulates motor nerve regeneration.
Injury to mammalian motor nerves can lead to paralysis, but relatively successful regeneration may occur when conditions are favorable. Elucidation of the mechanism upholding successful regeneration is of theoretical and clinical interest. In this study, the hypothesis that insulin-like growth factor II (IGF-II) can stimulate motor nerve regeneration was tested. When IGF-II was infused continuously near a site of crush on the sciatic nerve, the distance of motor axon regeneration was increased significantly in rats. In contrast, spontaneous regeneration was inhibited when an anti-IGF-II antiserum was infused through a "window" in the epineurium. Thus, infused IGF-II can increase, and endogenous IGFs can support, the regeneration of motor axons in lesioned nerves.
Near
S L
SL
Department of Anatomy and Neurobiology, Colorado State University, Fort Collins 80523.
Whalen
L R
LR
Miller
J A
JA
Ishii
D N
DN
D000818:Animals; D001369:Axons / Q000502:physiology; D007335:Insulin-Like Growth Factor II / Q000494:pharmacology*; D008297:Male; D009046:Motor Neurons / Q000502:physiology*; D009416:Nerve Regeneration / Q000187:drug effects*; D051381:Rats; D017207:Rats, Sprague-Dawley; D012584:Sciatic Nerve / Q000502:physiology
D007335:Insulin-Like Growth Factor II