Functional recovery in acute traumatic spinal cord injury after transplantation of human umbilical cord mesenchymal stem cells.
OBJECTIVE
Spinal cord injury results in loss of neurons, degeneration of axons, formation of glial scar, and severe functional impairment. Human umbilical cord mesenchymal stem cells can be induced to form neural cells in vitro. Thus, these cells have a potential therapeutic role for treating spinal cord injury.


METHODS
Rats were randomly divided into three groups: sham operation group, control group, and human umbilical cord mesenchymal stem cell group. All groups were subjected to spinal cord injury by weight drop device except for sham group.


METHODS
Thirty-six female Sprague-Dawley rats.


METHODS
The control group received Dulbecco's modified essential media/nutrient mixture F-12 injections, whereas the human umbilical cord mesenchymal stem cell group undertook cells transplantation at the dorsal spinal cord 2 mm rostrally and 2 mm caudally to the injury site at 24 hrs after spinal cord injury.


METHODS
Rats from each group were examined for neurologic function and contents of brain-derived neurotrophic factor, glial cell line-derived neurotrophic factor, and neurotrophin-3. Survival, migration, and differentiation of human umbilical cord mesenchymal stem cells, regeneration of axons, and formation of glial scar were also explored by using immunohistochemistry and immunofluorescence.


RESULTS
Recovery of hindlimb locomotor function was significantly enhanced in the human umbilical cord mesenchymal stem cells grafted animals at 5 wks after transplantation. This recovery was accompanied by increased length of neurofilament-positive fibers and increased numbers of growth cone-like structures around the lesion site. Transplanted human umbilical cord-mesenchymal stem cells survived, migrated over short distances, and produced large amounts of glial cell line-derived neurotrophic factor and neurotrophin-3 in the host spinal cord. There were fewer reactive astrocytes in both the rostral and caudal stumps of the spinal cord in the human umbilical cord-mesenchymal stem cell group than in the control group.


CONCLUSIONS
Treatment with human umbilical cord mesenchymal stem cells can facilitate functional recovery after traumatic spinal cord injury and may prove to be a useful therapeutic strategy to repair the injured spinal cord.
Hu
Sheng-Li
SL
Department of Neurosurgery, Southwest Hospital, Third Military Medical University, Chong-Qing, China.
Luo
Hai-Shui
HS
Li
Jiang-Tao
JT
Xia
Yong-Zhi
YZ
Li
Lan
L
Zhang
Li-Jun
LJ
Meng
Hui
H
Cui
Gao-Yu
GY
Chen
Zhi
Z
Wu
Nan
N
Lin
Jiang-Kai
JK
Zhu
Gang
G
Feng
Hua
H
D000818:Animals; D002465:Cell Movement / Q000502:physiology; D002478:Cells, Cultured; D004797:Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008124:Locomotion / Q000502:physiology; D045164:Mesenchymal Stem Cell Transplantation / Q000379:methods*; D009414:Nerve Growth Factors / Q000096:biosynthesis; D009416:Nerve Regeneration; D051381:Rats; D017207:Rats, Sprague-Dawley; D013116:Spinal Cord / Q000378:metabolism; D013119:Spinal Cord Injuries / Q000601:surgery*; D014183:Transplantation, Heterologous; D014470:Umbilical Cord / Q000166:cytology
D009414:Nerve Growth Factors