Effects of transplantation of oligodendrocyte precursor cells on neural functional recovery in spinal cord injury rat model

Objective To investigate the effects of transplantation of oligodendrocyte precursor cells(OPCs) on the recovery of neural function in rats with spinal cord injury.Methods The spinal cord injury(T10) rat model was established by Allen's method of weight-drop injury.Ninety six SD rats were randomly divided into 4 groups(24 each): transplantation group,control group,injury-only group and sham-operation group.Seven days after spinal cord injury,the rats of transplantation group received OPCs transplantation,of control group were injected with equivalent saline,and of injury-only group were untreated.The effects of OPCs transplantation on neural functional recovery in spinal cord injured rats were measured by the behavioral test and assessments of motor evoked potentials(MEP) and somatosensory evoked potentials(SEP).Results Immediately after spinal cord injuries,the neural function of spinal cord of rats was markedly impaired.The results of behavioral test,MEP and SEP in injured rats were much worse than those in sham-operation group.Although the neural function in spinal cord injured rats improved in different degrees with the time,the results of behavioral test,MEP and SEP showed it was significantly better in transplantation group than that in control group.Conclusion The transplantation of OPCs may enhance the recovery of neural function of rats with spinal cord injuries.