Abstract
Motor impairment is the most common and widely recognised clinical outcome after stroke. Current clinical practice in stroke rehabilitation focuses mainly on physical therapy, with no pharmacological intervention approved to facilitate functional recovery. Several studies have documented positive effects of growth hormone (GH) on cognitive function after stroke, but surprisingly, the effects on motor function remain unclear. In this study, photothrombotic occlusion targeting the motor and sensory cortex was induced in adult male mice. Two days post-stroke, mice were administered with recombinant human GH or saline, continuing for 28 days, followed by evaluation of motor function. Three days after initiation of the treatment, bromodeoxyuridine was administered for subsequent assessment of cell proliferation. Known neurorestorative processes within the peri-infarct area were evaluated by histological and biochemical analyses at 30 days post-stroke. This study demonstrated that GH treatment improves motor function after stroke by 50%–60%, as assessed using the cylinder and grid walk tests. Furthermore, the observed functional improvements occurred in parallel with a reduction in brain tissue loss, as well as increased cell proliferation, neurogenesis, increased synaptic plasticity and angiogenesis within the peri-infarct area. These findings provide new evidence about the potential therapeutic effects of GH in stroke recovery.
Highlights
Stroke is a leading cause of disability [1]
At 29 days post-stroke, there was a significant effect of recombinant human growth hormone (rhGH) treatment on motor function recovery (64.27%, p < 0.0001; Figure 2B)
We found a significant increase in the percentage area covered by Lectin within the peri-infarct region in stroke mice treated with rhGH compared with saline treatment (18.20%, p = 0.0129; Figure 6B)
Summary
Stroke is a leading cause of disability [1]. The most common and widely recognised neurological impairments caused by stroke are deficits in motor function [2]. Motor-based rehabilitation techniques have been developed to promote the recovery of motor impairments in stroke patients [3,4,5,6,7]. Current clinical practice for impaired sensorimotor functions are mainly based on physical therapy starting within 48 h of stroke onset, which can last for as long as months and years after the stroke [4,8]. Rehabilitation after stroke is often a long and slow process, and the development of new effective therapeutic strategies that can enhance the recovery of brain function and improve functional outcomes are highly desirable. One promising strategy in this regard is growth hormone (GH)
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