Histological and Immunohistochemical Effects of Neuroectodermal Cells Transplantation After Spinal Cord Injury in Rats

Abstract

In spinal cord injury, radical treatment is still a persistent hope for patients and clinicians. Our study aimed to determine the different histological changes in central, cranial and caudal sites of compressed spinal cord as a result of neuroectodermal stem cells (NESCs) transplantation in rats. For extraction of NESCs, future brains were extracted from mice embryos (10-days old) and cultured. Eighty, male rats were divided randomly into control, sham (20 rats each); while 40 rats were subjected to compressed spinal cord injury (CSCI). Seven days after spinal cord injury, rats were subdivided into 2 groups (20 rats each); an untreated and treated with NESCs injected cranial and caudal to the site of the spinal cord injury. Rats were sacrificed 4 weeks after transplantations of NESCs and specimens from the spinal cord at the central, cranial and caudal to site of spinal cord injury were proceeded to be stained with haematoxylin & eosin, osmic acid and Immunohistochemistry of glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP). Sections of CSCI revealed areas of hemorrhages, necrosis and cavitation limited by reactive astrocytosis, with upregulation of GFAP expression. Evidence of remyelination and mitigation of histopathological features, reactive astrocytosis in CSCI sections were more pronounced in cranial than in caudal region. NESCs transplantation ameliorated the pathological changes, promoted remyelination.

Experimental Trials of Spinal Cord Injury Treatment in Rats

“…Regarding to the histological and immunohistochemical examination, control group revealed permanent degenerative changes. These changes were similar to previously reported in rats by (Othman, 2017;AL-Karim et al, 2019).…”

“…Similar results were reported previously in rats (Chen et al, 2018), while in BM-MSCs, transplantation of BM-MSCs showed few reactive astrocytes cranial and caudal to the center of the injury because the BM-MSCS had the ability to reduce astrocytes response. These results were similar to that found in rats by (Al-Karim et al, 2019).…”

“…Concerning to immunohistochemistry, control group showed reactive astrocytosis and confirmed by the highest level of GFAP expression surrounding the lesion with glial scar formation cranial and caudal to the center of the injury (Al-Karim et al, 2019).…”

“…The Basso, Beattie and Bresnahan (BBB) locomotor rating scale is an important test used to assess the behavioral outcomes following experimental SCI (Basso et al, 1995). Histological changes of injured spinal cord and immunohistochemistry of glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP) are important procedures for evaluating stem cells transplantation in rats (Al-Karim et al, 2019).…”