Increased expression of Gem after rat sciatic nerve injury

Gem belongs to the Rad/Gem/Kir subfamily of Ras-related GTPases, whose expression is induced in several cell types upon activation by extracellular stimuli. Two functions of Gem have been demonstrated, including regulation of voltage-gated calcium channel activity and inhibition of Rho kinase-mediated cytoskeletal reorganization, such as stress fiber formation and neurite retraction. Because of the essential relationship between actin reorganization and peripheral nerve regeneration, we investigated the spatiotemporal expression of Gem in a rat sciatic nerve crush (SNC) model. After never injury, we observed that Gem had a significant up-regulation from 1 day, peaked at day 5 and then gradually decreased to the normal level. At its peak expression, Gem expressed mainly in Schwann cells (SCs) and macrophages of the distal sciatic nerve segment, but had few colocalization in axons. In addition, the peak expression of Gem was in parallel with PCNA, and numerous SCs expressing Gem were PCNA positive. Thus, all of our findings suggested that Gem may be involved in the pathophysiology of sciatic nerve after SNC.     

CAP1 was associated with actin and involved in Schwann cell differentiation and motility after sciatic nerve injury

Adenylate cyclase-associated protein 1 (CAP1), a member of cyclase-associated proteins that regulating actin dynamics, was shown to regulate actin filaments, localize to dynamic actin structures and mediate such processes as establishment of cell polarity, motility, morphogenesis, receptor-mediated endocytosis and mRNA location. But little is known about the role of CAP1 during peripheral nervous system injury. Here, we found the spatiotemporal protein expression of CAP1 after sciatic nerve crush. After crush, CAP1 had an increased protein expression level, reached a peak at about day 5 and then returned to the normal level at 4 weeks, similar to Oct-6. Besides, in 5-day injured tissue, using double immunofluorescent staining we found CAP1 had a colocalization with S100 and Oct-6. In vitro, during the process of cAMP-induced Schwann cells differentiation, we observed enhanced expression of CAP1 and P0. Specially, CAP1-specific siRNA-tranfected SCs did not show significant actin structure which form cellure surface tension and protrusion shape after cAMP treatment. And we observed the interaction of CAP1 with actin and that CAP1-specific siRNA-transfected SCs had a decreased motility and migration. Together, all these data indicated that the change of CAP1 protein expression was associated with Schwann cells motility and differentiation after the crush of sciatic nerve.     

Spatiotemporal Expression of PSD-95 and nNOS After Rat Sciatic Nerve Injury

Neuronal nitric oxide synthase (nNOS) has been implicated to influence peripheral nerve lesion and regeneration. Post-synaptic density-95 (PSD-95) is one of nNOS-anchoring proteins and plays an important role in specifying the sites of reaction of NO in nervous system. Here we established a rat sciatic nerve crush (SNC) model to examine the spatiotemporal expression of PSD-95 and nNOS. At gene levels, PSD-95 mRNA diminished shortly after crush, and significantly elevated from 2 days to 2 weeks, whereas nNOS decreased progressively post-operation, reached the valley at 1 day, and markedly up-regulated from 1 to 2 weeks after SNC. The expression of both molecules returned to the control level at 4 weeks post-injury. At protein levels, PSD-95 and nNOS underwent the similar changes as their gene expression except for a time lag during up-regulating. At their peak expression, PSD-95 co-labeled with nNOS in Schwann cells (SCs) of sciatic nerve within 0.5 mm from the lesion site, but had few colocalization in axons. In addition, the interaction between PSD-95 and nNOS enhanced significantly at 2 weeks after SNC. These results suggest a correlation of PSD-95 up-regulation with nNOS in reactive SCs of crushed sciatic nerve, which may lead to understanding the function of PSD-95 during peripheral nerve regeneration. Shangfeng Gao and Min Fei contributed equally to this work.     

Changes in Ataxin-10 Expression after Sciatic Nerve Crush in Adult Rats

Ataxin-10 is a cytoplasmic protein that belongs to the family of armadillo repeat proteins and the ataxin proteins are ubiquitously expressed in nervous tissue. A loss of Ataxin-10 in primary neuronal cells causes increased apoptosis of cerebellar neurons. Knockdown of ATXN10 with siRNA in HeLa cells results in cytokinesis defects-multinucleation. Because of the essential role of Ataxin-10 in nervous system and cellular cytokinesis, we investigated the spatiotemporal expression of Ataxin-10 in a rat sciatic nerve crush (SNC) model. After never injury, we observed that Ataxin-10 had a significant up-regulation from 3d, peaked at day 5 and then gradually decreased to the normal level at 4 weeks. At its peak expression, Ataxin-10 expressed mainly in Schwann cells and macrophages of the distal sciatic nerve segment from injury, but had few co-localizations in axons. Besides, the peak expression of Ataxin-10 was in parallel with proliferating cell nuclear antigen (PCNA), and Ataxin-10 co-labeled with PCNA. Thus, all of our findings suggested that Ataxin-10 may be involved in the pathophysiology of sciatic nerve after SNC.     

The Beneficial Effect of Ginsenoside Rg1 on Schwann Cells Subjected to Hydrogen Peroxide Induced Oxidative Injury

Ginsenoside Rg1 (GRg1) has been considered to have therapeutic potential in promoting peripheral nerve regeneration and functional recovery after sciatic nerve injuries. However, the mechanism underlying the beneficial effect of GRg1 on peripheral nerve regeneration is currently unclear. The possible effect of GRg1 on Schwann cells (SCs), which were subjected to oxidative injury after nerve injury, might contribute to the beneficial effect of GRg1 on nerve regeneration. The present study was designed to investigate the potential beneficial effect of GRg1 on SCs exposed to oxidative injury. The oxidative injury to SCs was induced by hydrogen peroxide. The effect of GRg1 (50 μM) on SCs exposed to oxidative injury was measured by the levels of malondialdehyde (MDA), superoxide dismutase (SOD), glutathione (GSH) and catalase (CAT) in SCs. The cell number and cell viability of SCs were evaluated through fluorescence observation and MTT assay. The apoptosis of SCs induced by oxidative injury was evaluated by an apoptosis assay. The expression and secretion of nerve growth factor (NGF) and brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) were evaluated using RT-PCR, Western blotting, and an ELISA method. We found that GRg1 significantly up-regulated the level of SOD, GSH and CAT, and decreased the level of MDA in SCs treated with hydrogen peroxide. In addition, GRg1 has been shown to be able to inhibit the proapoptotic effect of hydrogen peroxide, as well as inhibit the detrimental effect of hydrogen peroxide on cell number and cell viability. Furthermore, GRg1 also increased the mRNA levels, protein levels and secretion of NGF and BDNF in SCs after incubation of hydrogen peroxide. Further study showed that preincubation with H89 (a PKA inhibitor) significantly inhibited the effects induced by hydrogen peroxide, indicating that the PKA pathway might be involved in the antioxidant effect and neurotrophic factors (NTFs) promoting effect of GRg1. In addition, a short-term in vivo study was performed to confirm and validate the antioxidant effect and nerve regeneration-promoting effect of GRg1 in a sciatic crush injury model in rats. We found that GRg1 significantly increased SOD, CAT and GSH, decreased MDA, as well as promoted nerve regeneration after crush injury. In conclusion, the present study showed that GRg1 is capable of helping SCs recover from the oxidative insult induced by hydrogen peroxide, which might account, at least in part, for the beneficial effect of GRg1 on nerve regeneration.     

The Protective Effects of Achyranthes bidentata Polypeptides on Rat Sciatic Nerve Crush Injury Causes Modulation of Neurotrophic Factors

Pharmacological treatment is a therapeutic approach to improving nerve regeneration and functional recovery after peripheral nerve crush injury. The objective of the present study was to investigate the effects of the polypeptides isolated from Achyranthes bidentata Blume (abbreviated as ABPP) on rat sciatic crush injury and to test the possible involvement of neurotrophic factors. After surgical crush injury, rats received daily intraperitoneal injection of 0.2 ml saline containing 2 mg ABPP, 1 μg nerve growth factor (NGF) or no additive. The results from walking track analysis, electrophysiological assessment and histological evaluation indicated that the repair outcomes by ABPP treatment were close to those by NGF treatment, but better than those by treatment with saline alone. The quantitative real-time RT-PCR was used to monitor the mRNA expression of growth associated protein in the crush nerves and the mRNA expression of NGF, brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF), ciliary neurotrophic factor (CNTF), tyrosine kinase (Trk)A and TrkB in the dorsal root ganglia (DRGs) at L4–L6. The mRNA expression of these genes in the crush nerve sample and DRGs sample was higher after treatment with ABPP or NGF than after treatment with saline alone. Our findings suggest that ABPP might protect peripheral nerve against crush injury through stimulating release of neurotrophic factors and the other cytokines.     

Polyurethane/Gelatin Nanofibrils Neural Guidance Conduit Containing Platelet-Rich Plasma and Melatonin for Transplantation of Schwann Cells

The current study aimed to enhance the efficacy of peripheral nerve regeneration using a biodegradable porous neural guidance conduit as a carrier to transplant allogeneic Schwann cells (SCs). The conduit was prepared from polyurethane (PU) and gelatin nanofibrils (GNFs) using thermally induced phase separation technique and filled with melatonin (MLT) and platelet-rich plasma (PRP). The prepared conduit had the porosity of 87.17 ± 1.89%, the contact angle of 78.17 ± 5.30° and the ultimate tensile strength and Young’s modulus of 5.40 ± 0.98 MPa and 3.13 ± 0.65 GPa, respectively. The conduit lost about 14% of its weight after 60 days in distilled water. The produced conduit enhanced the proliferation of SCs demonstrated by a tetrazolium salt-based assay. For functional analysis, the conduit was seeded with 1.50 × 10⁴ SCs (PU/GNFs/PRP/MLT/SCs) and implanted into a 10-mm sciatic nerve defect of Wistar rat. Three control groups were used: (1) PU/GNFs/SCs, (2) PU/GNFs/PRP/SCs, and (3) Autograft. The results of sciatic functional index, hot plate latency, compound muscle action potential amplitude and latency, weight-loss percentage of wet gastrocnemius muscle and histopathological examination using hematoxylin–eosin and Luxol fast blue staining, demonstrated that using the PU/GNFs/PRP/MLT conduit to transplant SCs to the sciatic nerve defect resulted in a higher regenerative outcome than the PU/GNFs and PU/GNFs/PRP conduits.     

Beneficial Effect of Metformin on Nerve Regeneration and Functional Recovery After Sciatic Nerve Crush Injury in Diabetic Rats

Neuroprotective effects of metformin have been increasingly recognized in both diabetic and non-diabetic conditions. Thus far, no information has been available on the potential beneficial effects of metformin on peripheral nerve regeneration in diabetes mellitus. The present study was designed to investigate such a possibility. Diabetes was established by a single injection of streptozotocin at 50 mg/kg in rats. After sciatic nerve crush injury, the diabetic rats were intraperitoneally administrated daily for 4 weeks with metformin (30, 200 and 500 mg/kg), or normal saline, respectively. The axonal regeneration was investigated by morphometric analysis and retrograde labeling. The functional recovery was evaluated by electrophysiological studies and behavioral analysis. It was found that metformin significantly enhanced axonal regeneration and functional recovery compared to saline after sciatic nerve injury in diabetic rats. In addition, metformin at 200 and 500 mg/kg showed better performance than that at 30 mg/kg. Taken together, metformin is capable of promoting nerve regeneration after sciatic nerve injuries in diabetes mellitus, highlighting its therapeutic values for peripheral nerve injury repair in diabetes mellitus.     

Expressions of Forkhead Class Box O 3a on Crushed Rat Sciatic Nerves and Differentiated Primary Schwann cells

Forkhead box-containing protein, class O 3 a (FOXO3a), an Akt downstream target, plays an important role in peripheral nervous system. FOXO3a shares the ability to be inhibited and translocated from the nucleus on phosphorylation by proteins such as Akt/PKB in the PI3K signaling pathway. To elucidate the expression and possible function of FOXO3a in lesion and repair, we performed an acute sciatic nerve crush model and studied differential expressions of FOXO3a. We observed that expressions of FOXO3a in Schwann cells (SCs) of the peripheral nervous system and cAMP-induced differentiation were dynamically regulated. Western blot analysis showed FOXO3a level significantly decreased post injury. Moreover, Immunofluorescence double labeling suggested the changes were striking especially in SCs. In vitro, Western blot analysis showed that the expression of FOXO3a was decreased in cAMP-induced differentiated primary SCs. The FOXO3a siRNA-transfected SCs treated by cAMP promote differentiation of SCs through the PI3K/Akt pathway. The results indicate that FOXO3a plays an important role during differentiation of SCs.     

Peripheral Nerve Lesion Induces an Up-regulation of Spy1 in Rat Spinal Cord

Spy1, as a member of the Speedy/RINGO family and a novel activator of cyclin-dependent kinases, was shown to promote cell cycle progression and cell survival in response to DNA damage. While its expression and roles in nervous system lesion and repair were still unknown. Here, we performed an acute sciatic nerve injury model in adult rats and studied the dynamic changes of Spy1 expression in lumbar spinal cord. Temporally, Spy1 expression was increased shortly after sciatic nerve crush and peaked at day 2. Spatially, Spy1 was widely expressed in the lumbar spinal cord including neurons and glial cells. While after injury, Spy1 expression was increased predominantly in astrocytes and microglia, which were largely proliferated. Moreover, there was a concomitant up-regulation of CDK2 activity and down-regulation of p27. Collectively, we hypothesized peripheral nerve injury induced an up-regulation of Spy1 in lumbar spinal cord, which was associated with glial proliferation. Ye Huang and Yonghua Liu contributed equally to this work.     

Upregulated Expression of TRIM32 Is Involved in Schwann Cell Differentiation,Migration and Neurite Outgrowth After Sciatic Nerve Crush

Tripartite motif containing 32 (TRIM32), a member of the tripartite motif (TRIM) family, plays an indispensable role in myoblast proliferation. It also regulates neuron and skeletal muscle stem cell differentiation. Although it is of great importance, we know little about the roles of TRIM32 during peripheral nervous system injury. Here, we examined the dynamic changes of TRIM32 in acute sciatic nerve crush (SNC) model. After crush, TRIM32 rapidly increased and reached the climax at 1 week but then gradually declined to the normal level at 4 weeks post-injury. Meanwhile, we observed similar changes of Oct-6. What is more, we found co-localization of TRIM32 with S100 and Oct-6 in 1-week-injured tissues using double immunofluorescent staining. In further vitro experiments, enhancive expression of TRIM32 was detected during the process of cyclic adenosine monophosphate (cAMP)-induced Schwann cell differentiation and nerve growth factor (NGF)-induced PC12 cell neurite outgrowth. More interestingly, specific si-TRIM32-transfected RSC96 cells exhibited obvious reduction in the ability of migration. Taken together, we inferred that upregulated TRIM32 was not only involved in the differentiation and migration of Schwann cells but the neurite elongation after SNC.     

周围神经再生早期过程中内源性和外源性巨噬细胞数量变化的实验研究

目的：周围神经再生过程中巨噬细胞发挥了重要的作用,然而目前对于神经内内源性和外源性巨噬细胞的具体作用了解的却很少,因此本实验研究了小鼠坐骨神经损伤后早期再生过程中内源性和外源性巨噬细胞数量比例变化的情况,探索周围神经再生的规律。方法：移植CAG-EGFP转基因小鼠的全骨髓有核细胞到骨髓灭活野生型C5781／6小鼠体内建立嵌合体小鼠模型。待移植成功3个月后夹伤小鼠一侧坐骨神经,并在损伤后第2、7、14和28天取材、切片,使用巨噬细胞特异性抗体cD68进行免疫荧光染色,分析损伤神经段中内源性巨噬细胞（CD68＋／EGFP-）、外源性巨噬细胞（CD68＋／EGFP＋）的数量及其比例变化情况。结果：①夹伤骨髓移植模型小鼠坐骨神经后,参与坐骨神经损伤修复的巨噬细胞可分为两类,即内源性巨噬细胞（CD68＋／EGFP-）和外源性巨噬细胞（CD68＋／EGFP＋）;②夹伤坐骨神经后,浸润的总巨噬细胞数量从第2天开始逐渐增加,到第14天达到高峰,约为正常情况下的60倍,随后逐渐减少;③起初外、内源性巨噬细胞间的比例是1：1,差值最大出现在损伤后第14天为4：l。结论：小鼠坐骨神经夹伤后,内外源性巨噬细胞共同参与了受损神经组织远心段的修复和再生过程,损伤初期发挥作用的主要是内源性巨噬细胞,随后大量浸润的外源性巨噬细胞占主导作用。本实验首次连续观察并定量分析了神经损伤后早期内源性和外源性巨噬细胞的数量改变,证实了瓦勒氏变性过程中内源性和外源性巨噬细胞在不同阶段对巨噬细胞总量的贡献作用。     

The Beneficial Effect of Chitooligosaccharides on Cell Behavior and Function of Primary Schwann Cells is Accompanied by Up-Regulation of Adhesion Proteins and Neurotrophins

Chitosan-based tissue engineered nerve grafts are successfully used for bridging peripheral nerve gaps. The biodegradation products of chitosan are water-dissolvable chitooligosaccharides (COSs), which have been shown to support peripheral nerve regeneration. In this study, we aimed to examine in vitro interactions between COSs and Schwann cells (SCs), the principal glial cells in the peripheral nervous system. Treatment of primary SCs with COSs enhanced cell survival and promoted cell proliferation in a dose-dependent manner (0.25–1.0 mg/ml), as determined by real-time cell analyzer-based assay, cell growth assay, cell cycle analysis, and EdU incorporation. Western blot analysis and immunocytochemistry with antibodies against MBP and MAG (two myelin-specific markers) showed that COSs enhanced axonal myelination in a co-culture system consisting of SCs and dorsal root ganglia (DRGs). Furthermore, we observed that COSs enhanced the protein expression of N-cadherin and β-catenin in primary SCs, and also increased the release of BDNF and NGF in co-culture of SCs with DRGs. And we also noted that knockdown of N-cadherin in primary SCs reduced COSs-induced increase in cell proliferation. Our findings suggested that beneficial effects of COSs on cell behavior and functions of primary SCs might be accompanied by up-regulation of adhesion proteins and neurotrophins, thus providing a new insight into the supportive role of COSs during peripheral nerve regeneration.     

Changes in CLIP3 expression after sciatic nerve injury in adult rats

CLIP3 (cytoplasmic linker protein 3) is a 547 amino acid residue cytoplasmic protein that localises to Golgi stacks and tubulovesicular elements juxtaposed to Golgi cisternae. Composed of three Ank (ankyrin) repeats and two CAP-Gly (cytoskeleton-associated protein-glycine) domains, CLIP3 may function as a cytoplasmic linker protein that is involved in TGN–endosome dynamics. To define the expression and role of CLIP3 during peripheral nervous system degeneration and regeneration, we created an acute sciatic nerve injury (SNI) model in adult rats. Western blot analyses revealed prominent up-regulation of CLIP3 and PCNA (proliferating cell nuclear antigen) protein levels at 3?days after SNI. Immunohistochemistry displayed that the expression of CLIP3 was noticeably increased in the injured nerve. Immunofluorescence further revealed that the CLIP3 and PCNA proteins colocalised respectively with S100 in the cytoplasm of Schwann cells. The expression profile of the SC/neuron co-cultures demonstrated that CLIP3 and PCNA protein levels were markedly expressed during the early stage of myelination. These results suggest that CLIP3 is likely associated with the myelination of proliferating Schwann cells, and nerve tissue regeneration after peripheral nerve injury. CLIP3 and PCNA expression during early myelination may be related to the direct uptake and transport of lipids and cholesterol, which were derived from the degenerating myelin, by Schwann cells to prepare for the formation of myelin sheath-like structures around regenerated axons after SNI.     

Dynamic Change of Prohibitin2 Expression in Rat Sciatic Nerve After Crush

As a novel cell cycle inhibitor, PHB2 controls the G1/S transition in cycling cells in a complex manner. Its aberrant expression is closely related to cell carcinogenesis. While its expression and role in peripheral nervous system lesion and repair were still unknown. Here, we performed an acute sciatic nerve crush (SNC) model in adult rats to examine the dynamic changes of PHB2. Temporally, PHB2 expression was sharply decreased after sciatic nerve crush and reached a valley at day 5. Spatially, PHB2 was widely expressed in the normal sciatic nerve including axons and Schwann cells. While after injury, PHB2 expression decreased predominantly in Schwann cells. The alteration was due to the decreased expression of PHB2 in Schwann cells after SNC. PHB2 expression correlated closely with Schwann cells proliferation in sciatic nerve post injury. Furthermore, PHB2 largely localized with GAP43 in axons in the crushed segment. Collectively, we suggested that PHB2 participated in the pathological process response to sciatic nerve injury and may be associated with Schwann cells proliferation and axons regeneration.     

Temporal-Spatial Expressions of Spy1 in Rat Sciatic Nerve After Crush

As a novel cell cycle protein, Spy1 enhances cell proliferation, promotes the G1/S transition as well as inhibits apoptosis in response to UV irradiation. Spy1 levels are tightly regulated during mammary development, and overexpression of Spy1 accelerates tumorigenesis in vivo. But little is known about the role of Spy1 in the pathological process of damage and regeneration of the peripheral nervous system. Here we established a rat sciatic nerve crush (SNC) model to examine the spatiotemporal expression of Spy1. Spy1 expression was elevated gradually after sciatic nerve crush and peaked at day 3. The alteration was due to the increased expression of Spy1 in axons and Schwann cells after SNC. Spy1 expression correlated closely with Schwann cells proliferation in sciatic nerve post injury. Furthermore, Spy1 largely localized in axons in the crushed segment, but rarely co-localized with GAP43. These findings suggested that Spy1 participated in the pathological process response to sciatic nerve injury and may be associated with Schwann cells proliferation and axons regeneration.     

Down‐regulation of long non‐coding RNA MEG3 promotes Schwann cell proliferation and migration and repairs sciatic nerve injury in rats

Peripheral nerve injury and regeneration are complex processes and involve multiple molecular and signalling components. However, the involvement of long non‐coding RNA (lncRNA) in this process is not fully clarified. In this study, we evaluated the expression of the lncRNA maternally expressed gene 3 (MEG3) in rats after sciatic nerve transection and explored its potential mechanisms. The expression of lncRNA MEG3 was up‐regulated following sciatic nerve injury and observed in Schwann cells (SCs). The down‐regulation of lncRNA MEG3 in SCs enhanced the proliferation and migration of SCs via the PTEN/PI3K/AKT pathway. The silencing of lncRNA MEG3 promoted the migration of SCs and axon outgrowth in rats after sciatic nerve transection and facilitated rat nerve regeneration and functional recovery. Our findings indicated that lncRNA MEG3 may be involved in nerve injury and injured nerve regeneration in rats with sciatic nerve defects by regulating the proliferation and migration of SCs. This gene may provide a potential therapeutic target for improving peripheral nerve injury.