The Brain Is Needed to Cure Spinal Cord Injury

2017 ◽  
Vol 40 (10) ◽  
pp. 625-636 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tadashi Isa
Keyword(s):  
Spinal Cord ◽  
Spinal Cord Injury ◽  
Cord Injury ◽  
The Brain

scholarly journals Exercise Ameliorates Spinal Cord Injury by Changing DNA Methylation

Cells ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (1) ◽  
pp. 143
Author(s):  
Ganchimeg Davaa ◽  
Jin Young Hong ◽  
Tae Uk Kim ◽  
Seong Jae Lee ◽  
Seo Young Kim ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Spinal Cord ◽  
Spinal Cord Injury ◽  
Motor Cortex ◽  
Functional Recovery ◽  
Treadmill Exercise ◽  
Exercise Group ◽  
Control Group ◽  
Epigenetic Changes ◽  
Cord Injury ◽  
The Brain

Exercise training is a traditional method to maximize remaining function in patients with spinal cord injury (SCI), but the exact mechanism by which exercise promotes recovery after SCI has not been identified; whether exercise truly has a beneficial effect on SCI also remains unclear. Previously, we showed that epigenetic changes in the brain motor cortex occur after SCI and that a treatment leading to epigenetic modulation effectively promotes functional recovery after SCI. We aimed to determine how exercise induces functional improvement in rats subjected to SCI and whether epigenetic changes are engaged in the effects of exercise. A spinal cord contusion model was established in rats, which were then subjected to treadmill exercise for 12 weeks. We found that the size of the lesion cavity and the number of macrophages were decreased more in the exercise group than in the control group after 12 weeks of injury. Immunofluorescence and DNA dot blot analysis revealed that levels of 5-methylcytosine (5mC) and 5-hydroxymethylcytosine (5hmC) in the brain motor cortex were increased after exercise. Accordingly, the expression of ten-eleven translocation (Tet) family members (Tet1, Tet2, and Tet3) in the brain motor cortex also elevated. However, no macrophage polarization was induced by exercise. Locomotor function, including Basso, Beattie, and Bresnahan (BBB) and ladder scores, also improved in the exercise group compared to the control group. We concluded that treadmill exercise facilitates functional recovery in rats with SCI, and mechanistically epigenetic changes in the brain motor cortex may contribute to exercise-induced improvements.

scholarly journals Differential Response in Novel Stem Cell Niches of the Brain after Cervical Spinal Cord Injury and Traumatic Brain Injury

2018 ◽  
Vol 35 (18) ◽  
pp. 2195-2207 ◽  
Author(s):  
Aditi Falnikar ◽  
Jarred Stratton ◽  
Ruihe Lin ◽  
Carrie E. Andrews ◽  
Ashley Tyburski ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Traumatic Brain Injury ◽  
Spinal Cord ◽  
Spinal Cord Injury ◽  
Stem Cell ◽  
Brain Injury ◽  
Cervical Spinal Cord ◽  
Cervical Spinal Cord Injury ◽  
Cord Injury ◽  
The Brain ◽  
Stem Cell Niches

scholarly journals Ascorbic Acid Promotes Functional Restoration after Spinal Cord Injury Partly by Epigenetic Modulation

Cells ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 9 (5) ◽  
pp. 1310 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jin Young Hong ◽  
Ganchimeg Davaa ◽  
Hyunjin Yoo ◽  
Kwonho Hong ◽  
Jung Keun Hyun
Keyword(s):  
Spinal Cord ◽  
Dna Methylation ◽  
Spinal Cord Injury ◽  
Ascorbic Acid ◽  
Motor Cortex ◽  
Functional Restoration ◽  
Mrna Levels ◽  
Cord Injury ◽  
Epigenetic Modulation ◽  
The Brain

Axonal regeneration after spinal cord injury (SCI) is difficult to achieve, and no fundamental treatment can be applied in clinical settings. DNA methylation has been suggested to play a role in regeneration capacity and neuronal growth after SCI by controlling the expression of regeneration-associated genes (RAGs). The aim of this study was to examine changes in neuronal DNA methylation status after SCI and to determine whether modulation of DNA methylation with ascorbic acid can enhance neuronal regeneration or functional restoration after SCI. Changes in epigenetic marks (5-hydroxymethylcytosine (5hmC) and 5-methylcytosine (5mC)); the expression of Ten-eleven translocation (Tet) family genes; and the expression of genes related to inflammation, regeneration, and degeneration in the brain motor cortex were determined following SCI. The 5hmC level within the brain was increased after SCI, especially in the acute and subacute stages, and the mRNA levels of Tet gene family members (Tet1, Tet2, and Tet3) were also increased. Administration of ascorbic acid (100 mg/kg) to SCI rats enhanced 5hmC levels; increased the expression of the Tet1, Tet2, and Tet3 genes within the brain motor cortex; promoted axonal sprouting within the lesion cavity of the spinal cord; and enhanced recovery of locomotor function until 12 weeks. In conclusion, we found that epigenetic status in the brain motor cortex is changed after SCI and that epigenetic modulation using ascorbic acid may contribute to functional recovery after SCI.

scholarly journals Crossed activation of thoracic trunk motoneurons by medullary reticulospinal neurons

2019 ◽  
Vol 122 (6) ◽  
pp. 2601-2613
Author(s):  
Brandon K. LaPallo ◽  
Andrea Giorgi ◽  
Marie-Claude Perreault
Keyword(s):  
Spinal Cord ◽  
Spinal Cord Injury ◽  
Brain Stem ◽  
Neural Circuits ◽  
Single Cells ◽  
The Other ◽  
Medullary Reticular Formation ◽  
Functional Connections ◽  
Cord Injury ◽  
The Brain

Activation of contralateral muscles by supraspinal neurons, or crossed activation, is critical for bilateral coordination. Studies in mammals have focused on the neural circuits that mediate cross activation of limb muscles, but the neural circuits involved in crossed activation of trunk muscles are still poorly understood. In this study, we characterized functional connections between reticulospinal (RS) neurons in the medial and lateral regions of the medullary reticular formation (medMRF and latMRF) and contralateral trunk motoneurons (MNs) in the thoracic cord (T7 and T10 segments). To do this, we combined electrical microstimulation of the medMRF and latMRF and calcium imaging from single cells in an ex vivo brain stem-spinal cord preparation of neonatal mice. Our findings substantiate two spatially distinct RS pathways to contralateral trunk MNs. Both pathways originate in the latMRF and are midline crossing, one at the level of the spinal cord via excitatory descending commissural interneurons (reticulo-commissural pathway) and the other at the level of the brain stem (crossed RS pathway). Activation of these RS pathways may enable different patterns of bilateral trunk coordination. Possible implications for recovery of trunk function after stroke or spinal cord injury are discussed. NEW & NOTEWORTHY We identify two spatially distinct reticulospinal pathways for crossed activation of trunk motoneurons. Both pathways cross the midline, one at the level of the brain stem and the other at the level of the spinal cord via excitatory commissural interneurons. Jointly, these pathways provide new opportunities for repair interventions aimed at recovering trunk functions after stroke or spinal cord injury.

Hyperemia, CO2 responsiveness, and autoregulation in the white matter following experimental spinal cord injury

1978 ◽  
Vol 48 (2) ◽  
pp. 239-251 ◽  
Author(s):  
Andrew J. K. Smith ◽  
Douglas B. McCreery ◽  
James R. Bloedel ◽  
Shelley N. Chou
Keyword(s):  
Spinal Cord ◽  
Spinal Cord Injury ◽  
White Matter ◽  
Randomized Study ◽  
Spinal Cord Blood Flow ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Experimental Spinal Cord Injury ◽  
Cord Injury ◽  
Luxury Perfusion ◽  
The Brain

✓ The authors present the results of a controlled, randomized study of alterations in spinal cord blood flow, CO2 responsiveness, and autoregulation following experimental spinal cord injury in cats. Permanent paraplegia is shown to be associated with persistent hyperemia, loss of CO2 responsiveness, and impaired autoregulation in the white matter at the injury site. Probable mechanisms underlying these changes in spinal cord vasomotor control are discussed. Marked similarities between vascular responses of injured spinal cord and luxury perfusion of the brain are pointed out.

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