Abstract
The effects of human amniotic fluid stem cell (hAFSC) transplantation on bladder function and molecular changes in spinal cord-injured (SCI) rats were investigated. Four groups were studied: sham and SCI plus phosphate-buffered saline (SCI + PBS), human embryonic kidney 293 (HEK293) cells, and hAFSCs transplantation. In SCI + PBS rat bladders, cystometry showed increased peak voiding pressure, voiding volume, bladder capacity, residual volume, and number of non-voiding contractions, and the total elastin/collagen amount was increased but collagen concentration was decreased at days 7 and 28. Immunoreactivity and mRNA levels of IGF-1, TGF-β1, and β3-adrenoceptor were increased at days 7 and/or 28. M2 immunoreactivity and M3 mRNA levels of muscarinic receptor were increased at day 7. M2 immunoreactivity was increased, but M2/M3 mRNA and M3 immunoreactivity levels were decreased at day 28. Brain derived-neurotrophic factor mRNA was increased, but immunoreactivity was decreased at day 7. HEK293 cell transplantation caused no difference compared to SCI + PBS group. hAFSCs co-localized with neural cell markers and expressed BDNF, TGF-β1, GFAP, and IL-6. The present results showed that SCI bladders released IGF-1 and TGF-β1 to stimulate elastin and collagen for bladder wall remodelling, and hAFSC transplantation improved these changes, which involved the mechanisms of BDNF, muscarinic receptors, and β3-adrenoceptor expression.
Highlights
The effects of human amniotic fluid stem cell transplantation on bladder function and molecular changes in spinal cord-injured (SCI) rats were investigated
Rat bladder weight was significantly higher in the SCI + PBS and SCI + human embryonic kidney 293 (HEK293) groups than in the sham group at days 7 and/or 28, and human amniotic fluid stem cell (hAFSC) transplantation improved bladder weight at days 7 and 28 (P < 0.0001), bladder weight did not return to the level in the sham group (Supplementary Table 1)
The present study showed that in SCI rats, initial/final body weight improved at day 28, and bladder weight did not return to the level in the sham group at days 7 and 28, but bladder function improved after hAFSC transplantation
Summary
The effects of human amniotic fluid stem cell (hAFSC) transplantation on bladder function and molecular changes in spinal cord-injured (SCI) rats were investigated. The present results showed that SCI bladders released IGF-1 and TGF-β1 to stimulate elastin and collagen for bladder wall remodelling, and hAFSC transplantation improved these changes, which involved the mechanisms of BDNF, muscarinic receptors, and β3-adrenoceptor expression. A previous study showed that the treatment of SCI with umbilical cord blood stem cells could improve locomotor function and suggested that an increase in the levels of brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) and nerve growth factor (NGF) in the injured spinal cord is the main therapeutic mechanism of this effect[14].
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