Biological characteristics of olfactory ensheathing cells after transplantation into spine cord

Yuanchen MA; Yong TANG; Huiyong SHEN; Zhihua YANG; Yanfeng WU; Xuewen WANG; Peng WANG

ABSTRACT

BACKGROUND:

Olfactory ensheathing cells (OECs) have been shown to possess the potential of repairing injured spinal cord, but their biological characteristics after transplantation in vivo are not well understood.

OBJECTIVE:

To investigate the migration of OECs after transplantation into the injured spinal cord of adult rats.

DESIGN:

Randomized and controlled experiment.

SETTING:

Department of Orthopedics, Guangdong Provincial People's Hospital; Experimental Animal Center of the North Campus of Sun Yat-sen UniversityMATERIALS Totally 38 2-month-old male SD rats with body mass of (350 ±20) g were used in this study.

METHODS:

This experiment was conducted in the Experimental Animal Center, North Campus of Sun Yat-sen University between February 2004and May 2004. Two SD rats were used to extract the OECs, which were stained with Hoechst 33342. Totally 36 SD rats were subsequently randomized into 3 groups, namely rostral transplantation group, caudal transplantation group and control group with 12 rats in each group. The rats in the rostral and caudal transplantation groups subjected to operations to establish thoracic spinal cord injury model and OEC suspension was injected; in the control group, the rats were spared of thoracic spinal cord injury with only OEC suspension injection.MAIN OUTCOME

MEASURES:

Distribution of OECs in the spinal cord was observed under fluorescence microscope 1, 2, 4 and 6 weeks after operation, respectively.

RESULTS:

Of the rats in the 3 groups, 1 died in the rostral group, and 2in each of the caudal transplantation and control groups, leaving 29 rats for result analysis. The OECs in the rostral and caudal transplantation groups migrated longitudinally along the long axis of the spinal cord to a farthest distance of 8 mm and penetrating the scar tissues, but very few cells could reach the contralateral side. The OECs in the control group diffused locally without migration.

CONCLUSION:

OECs mainly migrate along the axons in white matter of the injured spinal cord, and their rostral and caudal migration does not differ in speed or amount. Only a small amout of OECs can across the transected gap of the spinal cord.