Department of Chemical Engineering, National Chung Hsing University, Taichung, Taiwan.
Cell Transplant. 2013;22(11):2029-39. doi: 10.3727/096368912X658953. Epub 2012 Nov 27.
Cell transplantation is a useful therapy for treating peripheral nerve injuries. The clinical use of Schwann cells (SCs), however, is limited because of their limited availability. An emerging solution to promote nerve regeneration is to apply injured nerves with stem cells derived from various tissues. In this study, different types of allogeneic cells including SCs, adipose-derived adult stem cells (ASCs), dental pulp stem cells (DPSCs), and the combination of SCs with ASCs or DPSCs were seeded on nerve conduits to test their efficacy in repairing a 15-mm-long critical gap defect of rat sciatic nerve. The regeneration capacity and functional recovery were evaluated by the histological staining, electrophysiology, walking track, and functional gait analysis after 8 weeks of implantation. An in vitro study was also performed to verify if the combination of cells led to synergistic neurotrophic effects (NGF, BDNF, and GDNF). Experimental rats receiving conduits seeded with a combination of SCs and ASCs had the greatest functional recovery, as evaluated by the walking track, functional gait, nerve conduction velocity (NCV), and histological analysis. Conduits seeded with cells were always superior to the blank conduits without cells. Regarding NCV and the number of blood vessels, conduits seeded with SCs and DPSCs exhibited better values than those seeded with DPSCs only. Results from the in vitro study confirmed the synergistic NGF production from the coculture of SCs and ASCs. It was concluded that coculture of SCs with ASCs or DPSCs in a conduit promoted peripheral nerve regeneration over a critical gap defect.
细胞移植是治疗周围神经损伤的一种有效疗法。然而，施万细胞（SCs）的临床应用受到其有限供应的限制。促进神经再生的一种新兴方法是将来源于各种组织的干细胞应用于受损神经。在这项研究中，将不同类型的同种异体细胞（包括SCs、脂肪来源的成体干细胞（ASCs）、牙髓干细胞（DPSCs））和SCs 与 ASCs 或 DPSCs 的混合物接种到神经导管上，以测试它们修复大鼠坐骨神经 15mm 长的临界间隙缺损的疗效。通过组织学染色、电生理学、行走轨迹和功能步态分析在植入 8 周后评估再生能力和功能恢复情况。还进行了体外研究，以验证细胞的组合是否导致协同神经营养作用（NGF、BDNF 和 GDNF）。实验大鼠接受接种了 SCs 和 ASCs 混合物的导管，在行走轨迹、功能步态、神经传导速度（NCV）和组织学分析方面的功能恢复最好。接种细胞的导管始终优于没有细胞的空白导管。就 NCV 和血管数量而言，接种了 SCs 和 DPSCs 的导管比仅接种了 DPSCs 的导管表现出更好的值。体外研究的结果证实了 SCs 和 ASCs 共培养时产生协同 NGF。结论是，在导管中共同培养 SCs 和 ASCs 或 DPSCs 可促进临界间隙缺损处的周围神经再生。
