ABSTRACT
BACKGROUND: At present, studies have shown that bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells (BMSCs) have self-renewal ability, which can be used as ideal seed cells for repairing tissue and organ damages caused by aging and lesions. OBJECTIVE: To study the changes in the levels of oxidation, inflammatory factors and neurotrophic factors (BDNF) in the brain of aging rats undergoing BMSCs transplantation, and to analyze the mechanism underlying the repair of learning and memory ability in the aging rats. METHODS: A total of 30 clean Sprague-Dawley rats were randomly divided into control group, model group and BMSCs group, 10 rats in each group. Aging models were made in the rats by 3-month subcutaneous injection of D-galactose. After modeling, BMSCs treatment was performed via tail vein injection in the BMSCs group.The injection was performed once a week,for 8 continuous weeks.Morris water maze was used to detect the learning and memory abilities of the rats in each group after the final injection of BMSCs. Superoxide dismutase activity in the brain tissue of rats was detected by xanthine oxidase method. Level of malondialdehyde in the rat brain tissue was detected by thiobarbituric acid method. Total antioxidant capacity of the brain tissue was detected by Fe3+reduction method. Real-time PCR and western blot assay were used to detect the expression of brain-derived neurotrophic factor mRNA and protein in the brain tissue of the aging rat, respectively. RESULTS AND CONCLUSION: Compared with the model group, the BMSCs group exhibited significantly higher activity of superoxide dismutase, stronger total antioxidant capacity, and higher levels of brain-derived neurotrophic factor mRNA and protein (P < 0.05), but the lower malondialdehyde level in the brain (P < 0.05). Compared with the model group, there was less time and higher frequency for passing through the platform in the BMSCs group (P < 0.05). Our findings further indicate that BMSCs can improve the abilities of learning and memory in aging rats, and the underlying mechanism is likely to improve antioxidant capacity and to regulate the level of brain-derived neurotrophic factors.