title: DNA vaccine against NgR promotes functional recovery after spinal cord injury in adult rats.
abstract: NgR is a common receptor for three myelin-associated inhibitors and mediates their inhibitory activities on neurite outgrowth. In the present study, we investigated whether a DNA vaccine targeting NgR could play a beneficial role in improving recovery from spinal cord injury (SCI). We demonstrated that a DNA vaccine against NgR was successfully constructed and expressed efficiently in vitro and in vivo. After immunization with anti-NgR DNA vaccine, a low level of antibody response and a T cell-mediated immune response were induced in the vaccinated rats. And the antisera taken from the anti-NgR DNA vaccinated rats could partly reverse the inhibition of MAG on neurite outgrowth. When the rats were subjected to a contusive SCI, the vaccinated rats showed much better functional recovery than the controls. In those vaccinated rats that induced a T cell response and generated antibodies against NgR, functional improvements were even better. Histological assessments by three-dimensional reconstruction further demonstrated that the total lesion volume in the vaccinated rats was reduced by 30.8% compared to the controls. These results collectively suggest that DNA vaccine against NgR can significantly improve functional recovery in rats that received contusive SCI and that the vaccination approach may provide a promising strategy for promoting SCI repair.
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurobiology, School of Medicine, Shanghai Jiaotong University, 280 South Chong Qing Road, Shanghai 200025, People's Republic of China.
authors.forename: Panpan
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Yu
authors.forename: Lidong
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Huang
authors.forename: Jian
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Zou
authors.forename: Huiqing
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Zhu
authors.forename: Xiaofei
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.forename: Zhihua
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Yu
authors.forename: Xiao-Ming
authors.initials: XM
authors.lastname: Xu
authors.forename: Pei-Hua
authors.initials: PH
authors.lastname: Lu
mesh_terms: D000704:Analysis of Variance; D000818:Animals; D018414:CD8-Positive T-Lymphocytes / Q000276:immunology*; D005260:Female; D058851:GPI-Linked Proteins; D007111:Immunity, Cellular / Q000502:physiology; D009043:Motor Activity / Q000502:physiology; D009185:Myelin Proteins; D000070816:Nogo Receptor 1; D051381:Rats; D017207:Rats, Sprague-Dawley; D011956:Receptors, Cell Surface; D018000:Receptors, Peptide / Q000187:drug effects / Q000276:immunology / Q000378:metabolism*; D020127:Recovery of Function / Q000187:drug effects / Q000276:immunology / Q000502:physiology*; D013119:Spinal Cord Injuries / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000276:immunology / Q000378:metabolism*; D016896:Treatment Outcome; D019444:Vaccines, DNA / Q000276:immunology / Q000627:therapeutic use*
chemical_list: D058851:GPI-Linked Proteins; D009185:Myelin Proteins; D000070816:Nogo Receptor 1; D011956:Receptors, Cell Surface; D018000:Receptors, Peptide; C486581:Rtn4r protein, rat; D019444:Vaccines, DNA