Effects of intravascular laser irradiation of blood in mitochondria dysfunction and oxidative stress in adults with chronic spinal cord injury.
OBJECTIVE
This study investigated the clinical effects of intravascular laser irradiation of blood (ILIB) therapy on oxidative stress and mitochondrial dysfunction in subjects with chronic spinal cord injury (SCI) resulting from trauma.


BACKGROUND
Little is known about how ILIB may generate antioxidant defenses in humans, and there is still a lack of randomized, sham-control studies to indicate its influence on different metabolic pathways.


METHODS
Twenty-four chronic SCI subjects (assigned to a sham and a study group), and 12 normal subjects were recruited. The study group underwent 1 h daily of ILIB for 15 days over 3 weeks. The sham group underwent ILIB with no laser power.


RESULTS
Baseline measurements established higher oxidative stress and mitochondrial dysfunction in the SCI subjects than in the normal subjects. At day 15 of therapy, the study group revealed a significantly higher mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) copy number, white blood cell adenosine triphosphate (WBC ATP) synthesis, and total antioxidant capacity (TAC) with significantly reduced malondialdehyde (MDA), than did the sham group. The study group intragroup comparison revealed significantly increased mtDNA copy numbers, WBC ATP synthesis, and TAC, with significantly reduced MDA, compared with its baseline measurements. The sham group intragroup comparisons demonstrated no statistical differences. Low-density lipoprotein (LDL) in the study group was significantly reduced at days 10 and 15, with significantly higher high-density lipoprotein (HDL) at day 45.


CONCLUSIONS
Our study results contribute to the knowledge about the effectiveness of ILIB in alleviating oxidative stress and mitochondrial dysfunction in chronic SCI patients.
Department of Neuroregeneration and Neurosurgery, Taipei Veterans General Hospital, Taipei, Taiwan.
Shih-Fong
SF
Huang
Yun-An
YA
Tsai
Shi-Bei
SB
Wu
Yau-Huei
YH
Wei
Po-Yi
PY
Tsai
Tien-Yow
TY
Chuang
D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000704:Analysis of Variance; D015415:Biomarkers / Q000097:blood; D001769:Blood / Q000528:radiation effects*; D016009:Chi-Square Distribution; D002908:Chronic Disease; D057510:Endovascular Procedures / Q000379:methods*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D028022:Low-Level Light Therapy / Q000379:methods*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D028361:Mitochondrial Diseases / Q000097:blood / Q000209:etiology / Q000532:radiotherapy*; D018384:Oxidative Stress / Q000528:radiation effects*; D011446:Prospective Studies; D012016:Reference Values; D018570:Risk Assessment; D016037:Single-Blind Method; D013119:Spinal Cord Injuries / Q000150:complications / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000378:metabolism / Q000532:radiotherapy*; D018709:Statistics, Nonparametric; D016896:Treatment Outcome
D015415:Biomarkers