Deep Brain Stimulation Improves Motor Function in Rats with Spinal Cord Injury by Increasing Synaptic Plasticity.

Wang, Min; Jia, Lina; Wu, Xiaobo; Sun, Zuoli; Xu, Zheng; Kong, Chao; Ma, Lin; Zhao, Ruifeng et al. · World Neurosurg · 2020

basic_science · Level V

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Abstract

To investigate the effect of deep brain stimulation (DBS) on rats with spinal cord injury (SCI) and its possible molecular mechanism. A rat SCI model was prepared using a modified Allen method. The animals were randomly divided into 3 groups (n = 12 per group): the sham group, the SCI group, and the SCI + DBS group. Then, DBS was applied to the rats in the SCI + DBS group for half an hour per day for 4 weeks. Basso, Beattie, and Bresnahan scores were used to assess spinal function. DBS significantly improved hindlimb motor function in SCI rats, and the protein expression levels of brain-derived neurotrophic factor, the mammalian target of rapamycin, tropomyosin-related kinase B, protein kinase B, p70 ribosomal S6 protein kinase, postsynaptic density protein 95, and synaptophysin increased correspondingly. DBS improves motor function in rats with SCI by increasing synaptic plasticity via tropomyosin-related kinase B-protein kinase B-mammalian target of rapamycin pathway.

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