Abstract
BackgroundThe olfactory ensheathing cells (OECs) derived from olfactory bulb (OB) may improve motor function after transplantation in injured spinal cord. However, the effects of OEC transplantation on sensory function have not been reported yet. The purpose of this study is to investigate whether OEC transplantation could affect the sensory function and to analyze the underlying mechanism.ResultsOEC transplantation into the hemisected spinal cords can result in hyperalgesia, indicated by radiant and mechanical stimuli towards the plantar surface in rats. This could be associated with upregulation of Brain Derived Neurotrophic Factor (BDNF), indicated by RT-PCR. Immunofluorecent staining showed that BDNF was mainly located in the neurons of the laminas I and II of the dorsal horn. Moreover, a notable upregulation on the level of p-ERK (phosphorylation of extracellular signal-regulated kinase), the downstream molecule of BDNF, was detected by using Western Blot. These findings indicate that the increased BDNF level associated with the p-ERK was possibly involved in neuropathic pain in hemisected spinal cord subjected to OEC transplantation.ConclusionsThe transplantation of OECs may induce the noticeable pain hypersensitivity in rats after hemisected spinal cord injury, and the possible mechanism may be associated with the phosphorylation of ERK and the activated BDNF overexpression.
Highlights
The olfactory ensheathing cells (OECs) derived from olfactory bulb (OB) may improve motor function after transplantation in injured spinal cord
Based on red fluorescent staining under incubation by p75 antibody, we identified the cultured cells as OECs in vitro (Figure 1D)
Mechanical stimuli By using the pressure stimuli expressed by grams to the injury-side hind paws of rats in each group, we found that the paw withdrawal thresholds (PWT) of sham group (192.67 ± 39.25 g) were significantly higher than those of the hemisected spinal cord injury (hSCI) group (113.33 ± 49.24 g) (***P < 0.001), and the OEC treatment group (93.33 ± 74.63 g) exhibited the lowest level (***P < 0.001)
Summary
The olfactory ensheathing cells (OECs) derived from olfactory bulb (OB) may improve motor function after transplantation in injured spinal cord. As a special type of neuroglial cells derived from the olfactory bulb, olfactory ensheathing cells (OECs), are featured the permanent function of neural regeneration. In an injured spinal cord, the transplanted OECs have a neuroprotective effect on descending cortical and brain stem neurons [8,9], suggesting the effect of OECs on the improvement of motor function. It is still unknown whether the treatment of OEC transplantation could work well on the sensory function
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