Improved locomotor recovery after contusive spinal cord injury in Bmal1^-/- mice is associated with protection of the blood spinal cord barrier.

ABSTRACT: The transcription factor BMAL1/ARNTL is a non-redundant component of the clock pathway that regulates circadian oscillations of gene expression. Loss of BMAL1 perturbs organismal homeostasis and usually exacerbates pathological responses to many types of insults by enhancing oxidative stress and inflammation. Surprisingly, we observed improved locomotor recovery and spinal cord white matter sparing in Bmal1^-/- mice after T9 contusive spinal cord injury (SCI). While acute loss of neurons and oligodendrocytes was unaffected, Bmal1 deficiency reduced the chronic loss of oligodendrocytes at the injury epicenter 6 weeks post SCI. At 3 days post-injury (dpi), decreased expression of genes associated with cell proliferation, neuroinflammation and disruption of the blood spinal cord bar

SUBMITTER: Slomnicki LP 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7450087 | biostudies-literature | 2020 Aug

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature