title: The protective effect of olfactory ensheathing cells on post-injury spiral ganglion cells.
abstract: CONCLUSIONS
  Transplantation of OECs into the cochlea may protect and increase the survival of SGCs.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  To investigate the protective effect of the transplantation of olfactory ensheathing cells (OECs) on injured spiral ganglion cells (SGCs) in rats.
  
  
  METHODS
  OECs were transplanted into the cochlea in rats with SGCs that were injured by kanamycin sulfate (KM). An equal volume of D-Hanks was injected into the cochlea of control rats. Auditory brainstem responses (ABRs) were recorded from the rats in both groups to monitor changes in hearing thresholds. Immunofluorescence was employed to examine the density and morphology of SGCs to assess the ototoxic condition of the cochlea.
  
  
  RESULTS
  There was no significant difference in the ABR threshold at each frequency between the control and experimental groups. Notably, in the experimental group, a number of Hoechst 3334-labeled nuclei were detected from the apex to the basal turn of the cochlea, demonstrating that the OECs were successfully transplanted and survived in the cochlea. In the experimental group, most of the SGCs were tightly arranged, and the nuclear membrane, chromatin, and nucleolus were all clear. The SGCs in the control group were loosely arranged, and only a few normal SGCs were observed in this group.
authors.affiliation: a Department of Otolaryngology , Eye, Ear, Nose & Throat Hospital, Shanghai Key Clinical Disciplines of Otorhinolaryngology, Fudan University , Shanghai , PR China.
authors.forename: Qi
authors.initials: Q
authors.lastname: Dai
authors.affiliation: b Department of Otolaryngology , Huai'an First People's Hospital, Nanjing Medical University , Huaian , Jiangsu , PR China.
authors.forename: Zhicun
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.affiliation: a Department of Otolaryngology , Eye, Ear, Nose & Throat Hospital, Shanghai Key Clinical Disciplines of Otorhinolaryngology, Fudan University , Shanghai , PR China.
authors.forename: Quan
authors.initials: Q
authors.lastname: Liu
authors.affiliation: a Department of Otolaryngology , Eye, Ear, Nose & Throat Hospital, Shanghai Key Clinical Disciplines of Otorhinolaryngology, Fudan University , Shanghai , PR China.
authors.forename: Hongmeng
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Yu
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001309:Auditory Threshold; D034381:Hearing Loss / Q000473:pathology / Q000628:therapy*; D009457:Neuroglia / Q000637:transplantation*; D011897:Random Allocation; D017207:Rats, Sprague-Dawley; D013136:Spiral Ganglion / Q000293:injuries* / Q000473:pathology
keywords: Olfactory ensheathing cells; spiral ganglion cells