title: Morphological analysis of embryonic cerebellar grafts in SCA2 mice.
abstract: SCA2 transgenic mice are thought to be a useful model of human spinocerebellar ataxia type 2. There is no effective therapy for cerebellar degenerative disorders, therefore neurotransplantation could offer hope. The aim of this work was to assess the survival and morphology of embryonic cerebellar grafts transplanted into the cerebellum of adult SCA2 mice. Four month-old homozygous SCA2 and negative control mice were treated with bilateral intracerebellar injections of an enhanced green fluorescent protein-positive embryonic cerebellar cell suspension. Graft survival and morphology were examined three months later. Graft-derived Purkinje cells and the presence of astrocytes in the graft were detected immunohistochemically. Nissl and hematoxylin-eosin techniques were used to visualize the histological structure of the graft and surrounding host tissue. Grafts survived in all experimental mice; no differences in graft structure, between SCA2 homozygous and negative mice, were found. The grafts contained numerous Purkinje cells but long distance graft-to-host axonal connections to the deep cerebellar nuclei were rarely seen. Relatively few astrocytes were found in the center of the graft. No signs of inflammation or tissue destruction were seen in the area around the grafts. Despite good graft survival and the presence of graft-derived Purkinje cells, the structure of the graft did not seem to promise any significant specific functional effects. We have shown that the graft is available for long-term experiments. Nevertheless, it would be beneficial to search for ways of enhancement of connections between the graft and host.
authors.affiliation: Department of Pathophysiology, Faculty of Medicine in Pilsen, Charles University, Lidicka 1, Pilsen 301 66, Czech Republic. Electronic address: zdenka.purkartova@lfp.cuni.cz.
authors.forename: Zdenka
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Purkartova
authors.affiliation: Department of Pathophysiology, Faculty of Medicine in Pilsen, Charles University, Lidicka 1, Pilsen 301 66, Czech Republic; Biomedical Centre, Faculty of Medicine in Pilsen, Charles University, Husova 3, Pilsen 306 05, Czech Republic. Electronic address: jena.tuma@gmail.com.
authors.forename: Jan
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Tuma
authors.affiliation: Department of Biology, Faculty of Medicine in Pilsen, Charles University in Prague, Karlovarska 48, Pilsen 301 66, Czech Republic. Electronic address: martin.pesta@lfp.cuni.cz.
authors.forename: Martin
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Pesta
authors.affiliation: Department of Medical Chemistry and Biochemistry, Faculty of Medicine in Pilsen, Charles University in Prague, Karlovarska 48, Pilsen 301 66, Czech Republic. Electronic address: vlastimil.kulda@lfp.cuni.cz.
authors.forename: Vlastimil
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Kulda
authors.affiliation: Department of Biology, Faculty of Medicine in Pilsen, Charles University in Prague, Karlovarska 48, Pilsen 301 66, Czech Republic. Electronic address: lucie.hajkova@lfp.cuni.cz.
authors.forename: Lucie
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Hajkova
authors.affiliation: Laboratory of Confocal Microscopy, Faculty of Science, Charles University in Prague, Vinicna 7, Prague 2 12844, Czech Republic. Electronic address: sebesta@natur.cuni.cz.
authors.forename: Ondrej
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Sebesta
authors.affiliation: Department of Pathophysiology, Faculty of Medicine in Pilsen, Charles University, Lidicka 1, Pilsen 301 66, Czech Republic; Biomedical Centre, Faculty of Medicine in Pilsen, Charles University, Husova 3, Pilsen 306 05, Czech Republic. Electronic address: frantisek.vozeh@lfp.cuni.cz.
authors.forename: Frantisek
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Vozeh
authors.affiliation: Department of Pathophysiology, Faculty of Medicine in Pilsen, Charles University, Lidicka 1, Pilsen 301 66, Czech Republic; Biomedical Centre, Faculty of Medicine in Pilsen, Charles University, Husova 3, Pilsen 306 05, Czech Republic. Electronic address: jan.cendelin@lfp.cuni.cz.
authors.forename: Jan
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Cendelin
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D002531:Cerebellum / Q000473:pathology* / Q000637:transplantation*; D005260:Female; D016332:Fetal Tissue Transplantation; D006085:Graft Survival; D008297:Male; D008822:Mice, Transgenic; D012737:Sex Factors; D020754:Spinocerebellar Ataxias / Q000628:therapy
keywords: ATXN2(Q127); Cerebellar degeneration; DNA; Deoxyribonucleic acid; EGFP; GAFP; Neurotransplantation; PC; PCR; Purkinje cell; Purkinje cell degeneration; Purkinje cells; SCA; ataxin 2 with 127 glutamine repeats; enhanced green fluorescent protein; glial fibrillary acidic protein; pcd; polymerase chain reaction; spinocerebellar ataxia