title: Umbilical cord blood-derived stem cells improve heat tolerance and hypothalamic damage in heat stressed mice.
abstract: Heatstroke is characterized by excessive hyperthermia associated with systemic inflammatory responses, which leads to multiple organ failure, in which brain disorders predominate. This definition can be almost fulfilled by a mouse model of heatstroke used in the present study. Unanesthetized mice were exposed to whole body heating (41.2°C for 1 hour) and then returned to room temperature (26°C) for recovery. Immediately after termination of whole body heating, heated mice displayed excessive hyperthermia (body core temperature ~42.5°C). Four hours after termination of heat stress, heated mice displayed (i) systemic inflammation; (ii) ischemic, hypoxic, and oxidative damage to the hypothalamus; (iii) hypothalamo-pituitary-adrenocortical axis impairment (reflected by plasma levels of both adrenocorticotrophic-hormone and corticosterone); (iv) decreased fractional survival; and (v) thermoregulatory deficits (e.g., they became hypothermia when they were exposed to room temperature). These heatstroke reactions can be significantly attenuated by human umbilical cord blood-derived CD34(+) cells therapy. Our data suggest that human umbilical cord blood-derived stem cells therapy may improve outcomes of heatstroke in mice by reducing systemic inflammation as well as hypothalamo-pituitary-adrenocortical axis impairment.
authors.affiliation: School of Dentistry, Kaohsiung Medical University, Kaohsiung City 807, Taiwan.
authors.forename: Ling-Shu
authors.initials: LS
authors.lastname: Tseng
authors.affiliation: Department of Medical Research, Chi Mei Medical Center, Tainan City 710, Taiwan ; Da-An Women and Children Hospital, Tainan City 710, Taiwan ; Department of Biotechnology, Southern Taiwan University of Science and Technology, Tainan City 710, Taiwan.
authors.forename: Sheng-Hsien
authors.initials: SH
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.affiliation: Department of Medical Research, Chi Mei Medical Center, Tainan City 710, Taiwan ; Department of Biotechnology, Southern Taiwan University of Science and Technology, Tainan City 710, Taiwan.
authors.forename: Mao-Tsun
authors.initials: MT
authors.lastname: Lin
authors.affiliation: School of Dentistry, Kaohsiung Medical University, Kaohsiung City 807, Taiwan.
authors.forename: Ying-Chu
authors.identifier: 0000-0002-2499-8632
authors.initials: YC
authors.lastname: Lin
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D064987:Cell- and Tissue-Based Therapy; D005312:Fetal Blood / Q000166:cytology; D018883:Heat Stroke / Q000628:therapy*; D006801:Humans; D007031:Hypothalamus / Q000293:injuries / Q000473:pathology / Q000637:transplantation; D051379:Mice; D033581:Stem Cell Transplantation; D013234:Stem Cells / Q000166:cytology*