title: Early molecular-level changes in rat bladder wall tissue following spinal cord injury.
abstract: Previously, we demonstrated using a rat model of spinal cord injury (SCI) that bladder wall tissue compliance significantly increased within the first 2 weeks following injury. In order to explore the potential molecular-level mechanisms of this event, the present study quantified molecules pertinent to bladder tissue remodeling and changes in mechanical properties. An initial gene array analysis followed by real-time qPCR revealed that the message levels for tropoelastin and lysyl oxidase were as high as 8-fold in SCI rats compared to normal. Furthermore, both the message and protein levels of TGF-beta1 and IGF-1, known stimulators of elastin synthesis, in SCI rat bladders were significantly higher compared to those of normal rats. Taken together, it can be speculated that functional changes of the bladder associated with SCI induce release of select growth factors, which, in turn, stimulate elastogenesis that lead to alteration of biomechanical properties of the wall tissue.
authors.affiliation: Department of Bioengineering, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA 15219, USA.
authors.forename: Jiro
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Nagatomi
authors.forename: Fernando
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: DeMiguel
authors.forename: Kazumasa
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Torimoto
authors.forename: Michael B
authors.initials: MB
authors.lastname: Chancellor
authors.forename: Robert H
authors.initials: RH
authors.lastname: Getzenberg
authors.forename: Michael S
authors.initials: MS
authors.lastname: Sacks
mesh_terms: D000222:Adaptation, Physiological; D000818:Animals; D005260:Female; D020869:Gene Expression Profiling; D005786:Gene Expression Regulation; D006133:Growth Substances / Q000378:metabolism*; D051381:Rats; D017207:Rats, Sprague-Dawley; D013119:Spinal Cord Injuries / Q000378:metabolism*; D001743:Urinary Bladder / Q000378:metabolism*
chemical_list: D006133:Growth Substances