title: Schwann-like cells seeded in acellular nerve grafts improve nerve regeneration.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  This study evaluated whether Schwann-like cells (SLCs) induced from bone marrow-derived mesenchymal stem cells (BM-MSCs) transplanted into acellular nerve grafts (ANGs) could repair nerve defects compared with nerve isografts and ANGs with BM-MSCs.
  
  
  METHODS
  BM-MSCs extracted, separated and purified from the bone marrow of rats, and some of the BM-MSCs were cultured with mixed induction agents that could induce BM-MSCs into SLCs. Either SLCs or BM-MSCs were seeded onto 10-mm ANGs, and the isografts were chosen as the control. The walking-track test, tibialis anterior muscle weight measurement, electrophysiological examination, toluidine blue staining, transmission electron micrographs and immunostaining of S-100 and VEGF in these three groups were evaluated in a 10-mm rat sciatic injury-repair model.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The walking-track test, tibialis anterior muscle weight measurement and electrophysiological examination of the sciatic nerve suggested the groups of ANGs with SLCs and isografts obtained better results than the BM-MSC group (P<0.05). Meanwhile, the results of the SLCs and isograft groups were similar (P>0.05). All the histomorphometric analyses (toluidine blue staining, transmission electron micrographs and immunostaining of S-100 and VEGF) showed that there were more regenerating nerve fibers in the group of ANGs with SLCs than the BM-MSCs (P<0.05), but there was no significant difference between the SLC and isograft groups (P>0.05).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  SLCs seeded in ANGs and isografts show better functional regeneration compared with BM-MSCs seeded in ANGs. Additionally, SLCs combined with ANGs present almost the same outcome as the isografts. Therefore, SLCs with ANGs can be a good choice in nerve defect repairs.
authors.forename: Lihong
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Fan
authors.forename: Zefeng
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Yu
authors.forename: Jia
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Li
authors.forename: Xiaoqian
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Dang
authors.affiliation: The first department of Orthopedics, the Second Affilliated Hospital of Xi'an Jiaotong University, No, 157 Xiwu Road, Xi'an, Shaanxi Province 710004, China. wkzh1955@163.com.
authors.forename: Kunzheng
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Wang
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D002417:Cattle; D002478:Cells, Cultured; D009416:Nerve Regeneration / Q000502:physiology*; D009417:Nerve Tissue / Q000502:physiology* / Q000637:transplantation* / Q000648:ultrastructure; D011897:Random Allocation; D051381:Rats; D017207:Rats, Sprague-Dawley; D012583:Schwann Cells / Q000502:physiology* / Q000637:transplantation* / Q000648:ultrastructure; D013552:Swine; D019737:Transplants / Q000502:physiology* / Q000648:ultrastructure