Pomeranz B, Campbell J J
Department of Zoology, University of Toronto, Canada.
Brain Res. 1993 Feb 19;603(2):271-8. doi: 10.1016/0006-8993(93)91247-p.
When a weak direct current (DC) of 10 microA driven by an implantable device was applied to a crushed sciatic nerve in 9-10-month-old rats, regeneration was accelerated as assessed electrophysiologically. Rats underwent a sciatic nerve crush of the right leg and were randomly assigned to one of three groups: (i) Cathode Distal (CD); (ii) Sham Implant (SI); or (iii) No Implant (NI). On post-operative days 25-39 each rat received a measurement of evoked electromyograms (EMG) in the foot. In addition each rat received a behavioural test score (BTS). This BTS correlated well with the evoked EMG results showing the behavioural relevance of the EMG results. NI rats performed the same as SI in the evoked EMG procedure, but CD rats performed significantly better than both the control groups. The recovery period in the CD rats was 21% shorter than in either the sham-treated or untreated controls showing that weak DC can greatly enhance nerve regeneration in adult rats. This result was in contrast to previous work in younger rats where DC treatments had no effects. The discrepancy is discussed in relation to the slowing of regeneration in older rats.
当由植入式设备驱动的10微安弱直流电施加到9至10月龄大鼠的坐骨神经挤压伤处时，通过电生理评估发现神经再生加速。大鼠接受了右腿坐骨神经挤压伤，并随机分为三组之一：（i）阴极远端（CD）组；（ii）假植入（SI）组；或（iii）无植入（NI）组。在术后第25至39天，对每只大鼠的足部进行诱发肌电图（EMG）测量。此外，每只大鼠都接受了行为测试评分（BTS）。该BTS与诱发EMG结果密切相关，表明EMG结果具有行为相关性。在诱发EMG程序中，NI组大鼠的表现与SI组相同，但CD组大鼠的表现明显优于两个对照组。CD组大鼠的恢复时间比假手术组或未治疗的对照组短21%，这表明弱直流电可以大大促进成年大鼠的神经再生。这一结果与之前对年轻大鼠的研究结果相反，在年轻大鼠中直流电治疗没有效果。针对老年大鼠再生减缓的情况，对这种差异进行了讨论。
