Tissue Eng Regen Med.  2016 Oct;13(5):585-600. 10.1007/s13770-016-9115-0.

Functional Recovery Not Correlated with Axon Regeneration through Olfactory Ensheathing Cell-Seeded Scaffolds in a Model of Acute Spinal Cord Injury

Affiliations
  • 1Department of Neurosurgery, Evangelic Hospital Bethel, Bielefeld, Germany. Haktan.Altinova@t-online.de
  • 2Institute for Neuropathology, Uniklinik RWTH Aachen University, Aachen, Germany.
  • 3Jülich-Aachen Research Alliance-Translational Brain Medicine (JARA Brain), Jülich, Germany.
  • 4Department of Neurosurgery, Uniklinik RWTH Aachen University, Aachen, Germany.
  • 5Charité Stem Cell Facility, Charité University Hospital, Berlin, Germany.
  • 6Institute of Neuroscience, Université Catholique de Louvain, Brussels, Belgium.
  • 7Donnelly Centre for Cellular & Biomolecular Research, University of Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
  • 8Department of Plastic, Reconstructive and Hand Surgery, Burn Centre, Uniklinik RWTH Aachen University, Aachen, Germany.
  • 9Department of Plastic and Aesthetic, Reconstructive and Hand Surgery, Center for Reconstructive Microsurgery and Peripheral Nerve Surgery (ZEMPEN), Agaplesion Markus Hospital Frankfurt, Academic Hospital of Johann Wolfgang von Goethe University, Frankfurt
  • 10Matricel GmbH, Herzogenrath, Germany.

Abstract

The implantation of bioengineered scaffolds into lesion-induced gaps of the spinal cord is a promising strategy for promoting functional tissue repair because it can be combined with other intervention strategies. Our previous investigations showed that functional improvement following the implantation of a longitudinally microstructured collagen scaffold into unilateral mid-cervical spinal cord resection injuries of adult Lewis rats was associated with only poor axon regeneration within the scaffold. In an attempt to improve graft-host integration as well as functional recovery, scaffolds were seeded with highly enriched populations of syngeneic, olfactory bulb-derived ensheathing cells (OECs) prior to implantation into the same lesion model. Regenerating neurofilament-positive axons closely followed the trajectory of the donor OECs, as well as that of the migrating host cells within the scaffold. However, there was only a trend for increased numbers of regenerating axons above that supported by non-seeded scaffolds or in the untreated lesions. Nonetheless, significant functional recovery in skilled forelimb motor function was observed following the implantation of both seeded and non-seeded scaffolds which could not be correlated to the extent of axon regeneration within the scaffold. Mechanisms other than simple bridging of axon regeneration across the lesion must be responsible for the improved motor function.

Keyword

Collagen; Scaffold; Olfactory ensheathing cells; Spinal cord injury; Functional recovery

MeSH Terms

Adult
Animals
Axons*
Collagen
Forelimb
Humans
Rats
Regeneration*
Spinal Cord Injuries*
Spinal Cord*
Tissue Donors
Collagen
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