Busulfan conditioning enhances engraftment of hematopoietic donor-derived cells in the brain compared with irradiation.

ABSTRACT: Hematopoietic stem cell gene therapy for neurological disorders relies on transmigration of donor-derived monocytes to the brain, where they can engraft as microglia and deliver therapeutic proteins. Many mouse studies use whole-body irradiation to investigate brain transmigration pathways, but chemotherapy is generally used clinically. The current evidence for transmigration to the brain after chemotherapy is conflicting. We compared hematopoietic donor cell brain engraftment after bone marrow (BM) transplants in busulfan- or irradiation-conditioned mice. Significantly more donor-derived microglial cells engrafted posttransplant in busulfan-conditioned brain compared with the irradiated, in both the short and long term. Although total Iba-1(+) microglial content was increased in irradiate

SUBMITTER: Wilkinson FL 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3616529 | biostudies-literature | 2013 Apr

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature