title: Tacrolimus reduces scar formation and promotes sciatic nerve regeneration.
abstract: A sciatic nerve transection and repair model was established in Sprague-Dawley rats by transecting the tendon of obturator internus muscle in the greater sciatic foramen and suturing with nylon sutures. The models were treated with tacrolimus gavage (4 mg/kg per day) for 0, 2, 4 and 6 weeks. Specimens were harvested at 6 weeks of intragastric administration. Masson staining revealed that the collagen fiber content and scar area in the nerve anastomosis of the sciatic nerve injury rats were significantly reduced after tacrolimus administration. Hematoxylin-eosin staining showed that tacrolimus significantly increased myelinated nerve fiber density, average axon diameter and myelin sheath thickness. Intragastric administration of tacrolimus also led to a significant increase in the recovery rate of gastrocnemius muscle wet weight and the sciatic functional index after sciatic nerve injury. The above indices were most significantly improved at 6 weeks after of tacrolimus gavage. The myelinated nerve fiber density in the nerve anastomosis and the sciatic nerve functions had a significant negative correlation with the scar area, as detected by Spearman's rank correlation analysis. These findings indicate that tacrolimus can promote peripheral nerve regeneration and accelerate the recovery of neurological function through the reduction of scar formation.
authors.affiliation: Intensive Care Unit, the First Affiliated Hospital of Nanjing Medical University, Nanjing 210029, Jiangsu Province, China.
authors.forename: Jun
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Que
authors.affiliation: Intensive Care Unit, the First Affiliated Hospital of Nanjing Medical University, Nanjing 210029, Jiangsu Province, China.
authors.forename: Quan
authors.initials: Q
authors.lastname: Cao
authors.affiliation: Department of Orthopedics, the First Affiliated Hospital of Nanjing Medical University, Nanjing 210029, Jiangsu Province, China.
authors.forename: Tao
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Sui
authors.affiliation: Department of Orthopedics, the First Affiliated Hospital of Nanjing Medical University, Nanjing 210029, Jiangsu Province, China.
authors.forename: Shihao
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Du
authors.affiliation: Department of Orthopedics, the First Affiliated Hospital of Nanjing Medical University, Nanjing 210029, Jiangsu Province, China.
authors.forename: Ailiang
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.affiliation: Department of Orthopedics, the First Affiliated Hospital of Nanjing Medical University, Nanjing 210029, Jiangsu Province, China.
authors.forename: Dechao
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Kong
authors.affiliation: Department of Orthopedics, the First Affiliated Hospital of Nanjing Medical University, Nanjing 210029, Jiangsu Province, China.
authors.forename: Xiaojian
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Cao
keywords: myelinated nerve fiber; neural regeneration; neurological function; peripheral nerve injury; scar; sciatic nerve; tacrolimus