Expression of Caspase12 in spinal cord after ischemia reperfusion injury treated by deep hypothermia in rats

Objective To evaluate the effects of deep hypothermia on spinal cord ischemia reperfusion injury(SCII) and on the expression of Caspase12 in spinal cord in rats. Methods 45 rats were divided into 3 groups:18℃ administration group(Group A, n = 15), 37℃ administration group(Group B, n = 15), and sham operation control group(Group C, n = 15). L2-5 spinal samples were collected at 6 h, 24 h, and 1 week after the administration from rats(each n = 5) in the 3 groups; and then the expressions of Caspase12 mRNA and protein were detected by RT-qPCR and immunohistochemistry, respectively; the histological changes of spinal cord were observed by HE staining, Nissl staining under light and electron microscopy. Results The pathological changes in Group A and B were worse than those in Group C, and were the worst in Group B(P 0.01). The expressions of Caspase12 mRNA and protein in Group A and B at the three time points were significantly higher than those in Group C, and were the highest in Group(P 0.05). Conclusions Deep hypothermia may protect the spinal cord from SCII through inhibiting the expression of Caspase12.