title: Enhanced functional recovery from sciatic nerve crush injury through a combined treatment of cold-water swimming and mesenchymal stem cell transplantation.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Although regimens of stem cell implantation can elicit functional recovery following peripheral nerve injury, the degree of outcome is still limited. This study evaluated the synergistic effects of cold-water swimming (CWS) and mesenchymal stem cell (MSC) transplantation on functional recovery of crushed sciatic nerve in rats.
  
  
  METHODS
  Forty Sprague-Dawley rats that had their sciatic nerve crushed during surgery were randomly divided into four groups: MSCCWS group, treated with combination of MSC and CWS; MSC group, treated with MSC alone; CWS group, treated with CWS alone; and non-treated group, without any treatments. The sciatic function index (SFI), vertical activity (VA), ankle activity (AA) and electrophysiological study were examined before, immediately after surgery, after the treatment and after 4  weeks from treatment. Morphological and S100 immunohistochemical studies were also performed.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The MSCCWS group showed a greater improvement in SFI, VA, AA, peak amplitudes and onset latencies of compound muscle action potential (CMAP) in sciatic nerve and infiltration of immune cells with significant difference from the MSC, CWS and non-treated groups (P < 0.05).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  MSC transplantation combined with CWS could achieve better results in functional recovery than a single treatment of MSC alone or CWS alone in nerve crush injury.
authors.forename: Chen-Chia
authors.initials: CC
authors.lastname: Yang
authors.forename: John
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.forename: Shyh-Chang
authors.initials: SC
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.forename: Yi-Min
authors.initials: YM
authors.lastname: Jan
authors.forename: Yueh-Ling
authors.initials: YL
authors.lastname: Hsieh
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D003080:Cold Temperature; D008297:Male; D045164:Mesenchymal Stem Cell Transplantation; D009409:Nerve Crush; D059348:Peripheral Nerve Injuries / Q000534:rehabilitation* / Q000601:surgery*; D010805:Physical Conditioning, Animal; D051381:Rats; D017207:Rats, Sprague-Dawley; D020127:Recovery of Function; D012584:Sciatic Nerve / Q000293:injuries*; D013550:Swimming; D014867:Water
chemical_list: D014867:Water
keywords: Cold-water swimming,; Crush nerve injury,; Functional recovery; Mesenchymal stem cell,