Sizes and Sufficient Quantities of MSC Microspheres for Intrathecal Injection to Modulate Inflammation in Spinal Cord Injury.

ABSTRACT: Microencapsulation of mesenchymal stem cells (MSC) in alginate facilitates cell delivery, localization and survival, and modulates inflammation in vivo. However, we found that delivery of the widely used ~0.5 mm diameter encapsulated MSC (eMSC) by intrathecal injection into spinal cord injury (SCI) rats was highly variable. Injections of smaller (~0.2 mm) diameter eMSC into the lumbar spine were much more reproducible and they increased the anti-inflammatory macrophage response around the SCI site. We now report that injection of small eMSC >2 cm caudal from the rat SCI improved locomotion and myelin preservation 8 weeks after rat SCI versus control injections. Because preparation of sufficient quantities of small eMSC for larger studies was not feasible and injection of the large eMSC is

SUBMITTER: Kumar S 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5849255 | biostudies-literature | 2015 Dec

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature