Motor and cognitive recovery induced by bone marrow stem cells grafted to striatum and hippocampus of impaired aged rats: functional and therapeutical considerations
C.I. Fernandez, E. Alberti, Y. Mendoza, J. Collazo, L. Martinez, J.C. Rosillo
Basic Division. International Center of Neurological Restoration (CIREN). Ave 25 no. 15805 entre 158 y 160. cubanacan. Playa. Havana City. CP. 11300. Cuba
Impairments in motor coordination and cognition in normal and
pathological aging are often accompanied by structural changes i.e.
loss of synapses and neurons. Also, it has been recently shown that
bone marrow stem cells can give origin to cells of different tissues,
including neural cells. Given the therapeutic implications of
increasing health and functional possibilities in the aged brain, we
have tested the effects of rat femur bone marrow stem cells, rBMSCs,
grafting to the striatum hippocampus of aged rats with motor or
cognitive deficits respectively. Bone marrow cells were transduced with
an adenovirus driving the expression of green fluorescence protein GFP
and other classical stains in order to determine their migration,
engraftment, differentiation and associated behavioral recovery. Five
weeks after it, control and grafted rats were re-evaluated at MWM test,
Passive avoidance, Open field, motor coordination and Marshall tests
and perfused. Brains were processed and analyzed for fluorescent
proteins expression. GFP was detected in cells with some
differentiation degree into like-neural cells. Their exact phenotype is
yet to be determined. A significant functional recovery was observed 6w
after grafting, suggesting a trophic interaction between rBMSCs and the
aged/dystrophic host brain, or with the host brain progenitor cells
and/or by increasing the number of functional cells at striatum or
hippocampus, suggesting the aging brain keep its functional plasticity
as well as that BMSCs are interesting candidates for cell replacement
therapies in neurodegenerative disorders.
Key words:
stem cells/ aging/ neural grafting/sensorimotor function/ cognition
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