Gwam Chukwuweike, Mohamed Nequesha, Ogunsola Ayobami S, Brown Marcel G, Henry Kaitlin A, Ma Xue
Department of Orthopaedic Surgery and Rehabilitation, Atrium Wake Forest Baptist Health, Winston-Salem, NC, USA.
Ann Transl Med. 2025 Feb 28;13(1):1. doi: 10.21037/atm-24-107. Epub 2025 Feb 25.
Peripheral nerve injuries present a major clinical challenge due to their high morbidity and often incomplete recovery of function. While autografts remain the gold standard for nerve repair, their use is constrained by limited donor availability and donor site complications. Alternative strategies, such as allografts and tissue-engineered grafts, have been developed but are still associated with suboptimal outcomes, including chronic pain and sensory disturbances. Thus, there is a need for novel therapies that can enhance nerve regeneration. Amniotic fluid stem cell conditioned medium (AFS-CM) houses regenerative properties that may be useful in peripheral nerve injury. This study aims to assess the role of AFS-CM on Schwann cell survival and proliferation under normative and oxidative stress conditions, preventing oxidative stress-induced premature senescence of Schwann cells and maintaining cellular redox homeostasis.
Primary Schwann cells were treated with various concentrations of AFS-CM. Cell proliferation was assessed using the Cell Counting Kit-8 (CCK-8) assay, and viability under oxidative stress was measured after exposing cells to hydrogen peroxide (HO). Reactive oxygen species (ROS) levels and both catalase and superoxide dismutase (SOD) levels were evaluated. Cellular senescence markers were also assessed to determine AFS-CM's protective effects.
AFS-CM treatment resulted in a dose-dependent increase in Schwann cell proliferation (P<0.05). Under oxidative stress conditions, AFS-CM significantly improved cell viability compared to controls (P<0.05). ROS levels were markedly reduced in AFS-CM-treated cells (P<0.05), and this was accompanied by upregulation of catalase and SOD expression (P<0.05). Moreover, AFS-CM reduced stress-induced cellular senescence, as indicated by decreased senescence-associated β-galactosidase activity and lower expression of senescence markers (P<0.05).
AFS-CM enhances Schwann cell proliferation, viability, and resistance to oxidative stress, while reducing cellular senescence. These findings suggest that AFS-CM could be a promising adjunctive therapy for peripheral nerve injuries by promoting Schwann cell resilience and regenerative capacity. Future studies are needed to validate these results and explore their potential clinical application for improving functional recovery in patients with peripheral nerve damage.
周围神经损伤因其高发病率和功能恢复往往不完全而成为一项重大临床挑战。虽然自体移植仍然是神经修复的金标准，但其应用受到供体来源有限和供体部位并发症的限制。已开发出异体移植和组织工程移植物等替代策略，但仍存在诸如慢性疼痛和感觉障碍等不理想的结果。因此，需要能够促进神经再生的新疗法。羊水干细胞条件培养基（AFS-CM）具有再生特性，可能对外周神经损伤有用。本研究旨在评估AFS-CM在正常和氧化应激条件下对雪旺细胞存活和增殖的作用，防止氧化应激诱导的雪旺细胞过早衰老并维持细胞氧化还原稳态。
用不同浓度的AFS-CM处理原代雪旺细胞。使用细胞计数试剂盒-8（CCK-8）测定法评估细胞增殖，并在将细胞暴露于过氧化氢（HO）后测量氧化应激下的细胞活力。评估活性氧（ROS）水平以及过氧化氢酶和超氧化物歧化酶（SOD）水平。还评估细胞衰老标志物以确定AFS-CM的保护作用。
AFS-CM处理导致雪旺细胞增殖呈剂量依赖性增加（P<0.05）。在氧化应激条件下，与对照组相比，AFS-CM显著提高了细胞活力（P<0.05）。AFS-CM处理的细胞中ROS水平显著降低（P<0.05），同时过氧化氢酶和SOD表达上调（P<0.05）。此外，AFS-CM降低了应激诱导的细胞衰老，表现为衰老相关β-半乳糖苷酶活性降低和衰老标志物表达降低（P<0.05）。
AFS-CM可增强雪旺细胞增殖、活力及对氧化应激的抵抗力，同时减少细胞衰老。这些发现表明，AFS-CM通过促进雪旺细胞的恢复力和再生能力，可能成为外周神经损伤的一种有前景的辅助治疗方法。未来需要进一步研究来验证这些结果，并探索其在改善外周神经损伤患者功能恢复方面的潜在临床应用。
