HOME HELP FEEDBACK SUBSCRIPTIONS ARCHIVE SEARCH TABLE OF CONTENTS		QUICK SEARCH:   [advanced] Author: Keyword(s): Year:  Vol:  Page:

This Article Full Text Full Text (PDF) All Versions of this Article: 98/4/1988    most recent 00391.2007v1 Alert me when this article is cited Alert me if a correction is posted Citation Map Services Email this article to a friend Similar articles in this journal Similar articles in ISI Web of Science Similar articles in PubMed Alert me to new issues of the journal Download to citation manager Citing Articles Citing Articles via HighWire Citing Articles via ISI Web of Science (1) Citing Articles via Google Scholar Google Scholar Articles by Boyce, V. S. Articles by Lemay, M. A. Search for Related Content PubMed PubMed Citation Articles by Boyce, V. S. Articles by Lemay, M. A.

Neurotrophic Factors Promote and Enhance Locomotor Recovery in Untrained Spinalized Cats

Department of Neurobiology and Anatomy, Drexel University College of Medicine, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

Submitted 5 April 2007; accepted in final form 25 July 2007

In spinal cats, locomotor recovery without rehabilitation is limited, but weight-bearing stepping returns with treadmill training. We studied whether neurotrophins administered to the injury site also restores locomotion in untrained spinal cats and whether combining both neurotrophins and training further improves recovery. Ordinary rat fibroblasts or a mixture of fibroblasts secreting brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) and neurotrophin-3 (NT-3) (Fb-NTF) were grafted into T12 spinal transection sites. Cats with each type of transplant were divided into two groups: one receiving daily training and the other receiving no training. As expected, trained cats with/without neurotrophin-producing transplants could step on the treadmill. Untrained cats without neurotrophin-producing transplants could not locomote. However, untrained cats with neurotrophin-secreting transplants performed plantar weight-bearing stepping at speeds up to 0.8 m/s as early as 2 wk after transection. Locomotor capability and stance lengths in these animals were similar to those in animals receiving training alone, suggesting that administration of BDNF/NT-3 was equivalent to treadmill training in restoring locomotion in chronically spinalized cats. Cats receiving both interventions showed the greatest improvement in step length. Anatomical evaluation indicated that all transections were complete and that axons did not enter the cord caudal to the graft. Thus BDNF/NT-3 secreting fibroblasts were equivalent to training in their ability to engage the locomotor circuitry in chronic spinal cats. Furthermore, the rapid time-course of recovery and the absence of axonal growth through the transplants indicate that the restorative mechanisms were not related to supraspinal axonal growth. Finally, the results show that transplants beneficial in rodents are applicable to larger mammals.

This article has been cited by other articles:

				R. D. de Leon Could Neurotrophins Replace Treadmill Training as Locomotor Therapy Following Spinal Cord Injury? Focus on "Neurotrophic Factors Promote and Enhance Locomotor Recovery in Untrained Spinalized Cats" J Neurophysiol, October 1, 2007; 98(4): 1845 - 1846. [Full Text] [PDF]