Systemic Transplantation of Bone Marrow Mononuclear Cells Promotes Axonal Regeneration and Analgesia in a Model of Wallerian Degeneration

USACH V; MALET MARIANA; LOPEZ MARGARITA; LAVALLE, LUCIA; PIÑERO, GONZALO; SACCOLITTI MARIA; CUETO ALICIA; BRUMOVSKI PABLO; BRUSCO ALICIA; SETTON - AVRUJ, PATRICIA

TRANSPLANTATION

LIPPINCOTT WILLIAMS & WILKINS

Lugar: Philadelphia; Año: 2017

0041-1337

Background. Reinnervation timing after nerve injury is critical for favorable axonal regeneration, remyelination, and clinical improvement.Considering bonemarrowmononuclear cells (BMMC) are easily obtained and readily available for transplant, this workanalyzed the effect of BMMC systemic administration on nerve repair and pain behavior.Methods. Adult rats with sciatic nervecrush were immediately and systemically injected BMMC through the caudal artery. Nontreated, sham and naïve rats were alsoincluded. Histological, immunohistochemical, biochemical, functional, and behavioral analyses were performed in nerves harvestedfrom each group at different survival times. Results. Axons in BMMC-treated rats exhibited a more conserved morphologicalappearance than those in nontreated rats, as observed at different survival times both in semithin sections andultrastructural analysis. BMMC-treated rats also showed a reduction in major myelin protein immunoreactive clusters 7 and14 days postinjury, as compared with nontreated rats. Electrophysiological analysis showed BMMC treatment to slightly improvethe amplitude of compound muscle action potential starting at 14 days postinjury. Finally, mechanical withdrawal threshold revealeda full preventive action against transient mechanical hypersensitivity in BMMC-treated rats. Conclusions. These datademonstrate the efficiency of BMMC, systemically and noninvasively transplanted, in correcting morphological, functional and behavioralalterations resulting from peripheral nerve injury