ABSTRACT
Objective:To observe any effect of transplanting bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells (BMSCs) on microglia and neuron expression in newborn mice with hypoxic-ischemic brain damage (HIBD).Methods:Sixty 10-day-old C57BL/6 mice were randomly divided into a sham operation group, a hypoxic-ischemia group, a placebo group and a stem cell group, each of 15. The hypoxia-ischemia model was induced in the hypoxia-ischemia, placebo and stem cell groups, while the sham operation group was sutured after the neck incision. After successful modeling, the rats in the stem cell group were injected with BMSCs into the bregma while those in the placebo group received phosphate buffered saline. Seven days later, brain tissue was resected and its structure was observed using transmission electron microscopy. Immunofluorescence staining was performed to observe the expression of microglia and neurons in the left cerebral cortex.Results:Seven days after stem cell transplantation, the neuron morphology had improved and nerve fiber swelling was relieved in the stem cell group. The average expression of neurons was significantly greater in the stem cell group compared with the hypoxic-ischemia and placebo groups, while the expression of microglia was significantly lower.Conclusions:Bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells may induce neuron regeneration and reduce inflammatory response by inhibiting the expression of microglia, at least in neonatal rats modeling hypoxic-ischemic brain injury.