Dataset Information

Short-Duration, Pulsatile, Electrical Stimulation Therapy Accelerates Axon Regeneration and Recovery following Tibial Nerve Injury and Repair in Rats.

ABSTRACT:

Background

Repair of nerve injuries can fail to achieve adequate functional recovery. Electrical stimulation applied at the time of nerve repair can accelerate axon regeneration, which may improve the likelihood of recovery. However, widespread use of electrical stimulation may be limited by treatment protocols that increase operative time and complexity. This study evaluated whether a short-duration electrical stimulation protocol (10 minutes) was efficacious to enhance regeneration following nerve repair using rat models.

Methods

Lewis and Thy1-green fluorescent protein rats were randomized to three groups: 0 minutes of electrical stimulation (no electrical stimulation; control), 10 minutes of electrical stimulation, and 60 minutes of electrical stimulation. All groups underwent tibial nerve transection and repair. In the intervention groups, electrical stimulation was delivered after nerve repair. Outcomes were assessed using immunohistochemistry, histology, and serial walking track analysis.

Results

Two weeks after nerve repair, Thy1-green fluorescent protein rats demonstrated increased green fluorescent protein-positive axon outgrowth from the repair site with electrical stimulation compared to no electrical stimulation. Serial measurement of walking tracks after nerve repair revealed recovery was achieved more rapidly in both electrical stimulation groups as compared to no electrical stimulation. Histologic analysis of nerve distal to the repair at 8 weeks revealed robust axon regeneration in all groups.

Conclusions

As little as 10 minutes of intraoperative electrical stimulation therapy increased early axon regeneration and facilitated functional recovery following nerve transection with repair. Also, as early axon outgrowth increased following electrical stimulation with nerve repair, these findings suggest electrical stimulation facilitated recovery because of earlier axon growth across the suture-repaired site into the distal nerve to reach end-organ targets.

Clinical relevance statement

Brief (10-minute) electrical stimulation therapy can provide similar benefits to the 60-minute protocol in an acute sciatic nerve transection/repair rat model and merit further studies, as they represent a translational advantage.

SUBMITTER: Roh J

PROVIDER: S-EPMC8969122 | biostudies-literature | 2022 Apr

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

ACCESS DATA

Publications

Short-Duration, Pulsatile, Electrical Stimulation Therapy Accelerates Axon Regeneration and Recovery following Tibial Nerve Injury and Repair in Rats.

Roh Joseph J Schellhardt Lauren L Keane Grace C GC Hunter Daniel A DA Moore Amy M AM Snyder-Warwick Alison K AK Mackinnon Susan E SE Wood Matthew D MD

Plastic and reconstructive surgery 20220401 4

<h4>Background</h4>Repair of nerve injuries can fail to achieve adequate functional recovery. Electrical stimulation applied at the time of nerve repair can accelerate axon regeneration, which may improve the likelihood of recovery. However, widespread use of electrical stimulation may be limited by treatment protocols that increase operative time and complexity. This study evaluated whether a short-duration electrical stimulation protocol (10 minutes) was efficacious to enhance regeneration fol ...[more]

PMID: 35139047

Similar Datasets

Project description:Peripheral nerve injuries often lead to incomplete recovery and contribute to significant disability to approximately 360,000 people in the USA each year. Stem cell therapy holds significant promise for peripheral nerve regeneration, but maintenance of stem cell viability and differentiation potential in vivo are still major obstacles for translation. Using a made-in-house 96-well vertical electrical stimulation (ES) platform, we investigated the effects of different stimulating pulse frequency, duration and field direction on human neural crest stem cell (NCSC) differentiation. We observed dendritic morphology with enhanced neuronal differentiation for NCSCs cultured on cathodes subject to 20 Hz, 100μs pulse at a potential gradient of 200 mV/mm. We further evaluated the effect of a novel cell-based therapy featuring optimized pulsatile ES of NCSCs for in vivo transplantation following peripheral nerve regeneration. 15 mm critical-sized sciatic nerve injuries were generated with subsequent surgical repair in sixty athymic nude rats. Injured animals were randomly assigned into five groups (N = 12 per group): blank control, ES, NCSC, NCSC + ES, and autologous nerve graft. The optimized ES was applied immediately after surgical repair for 1 h in ES and NCSC + ES groups. Recovery was assessed by behavioral (CatWalk gait analysis), wet muscle-mass, histomorphometric, and immunohistochemical analyses at either 6 or 12 weeks after surgery (N = 6 per group). Gastrocnemius muscle wet mass measurements in ES + NCSC group were comparable to autologous nerve transplantation and significantly higher than other groups (p < 0.05). Quantitative histomorphometric analysis and catwalk gait analysis showed similar improvements by ES on NCSCs (p < 0.05). A higher number of viable NCSCs was shown via immunochemical analysis, with higher Schwann cell (SC) differentiation in the NCSC + ES group compared to the NCSC group (p < 0.05). Overall, ES on NCSC transplantation significantly enhanced nerve regeneration after injury and repair, and was comparable to autograft treatment. Thus, ES can be a potent alternative to biochemical and physical cues for modulating stem cell survival and differentiation. This novel cell-based intervention presents an effective and safe approach for improved outcomes after peripheral nerve repair.

Dataset Information

Short-Duration, Pulsatile, Electrical Stimulation Therapy Accelerates Axon Regeneration and Recovery following Tibial Nerve Injury and Repair in Rats.

Background

Methods

Results

Conclusions

Clinical relevance statement

Publications

Short-Duration, Pulsatile, Electrical Stimulation Therapy Accelerates Axon Regeneration and Recovery following Tibial Nerve Injury and Repair in Rats.

Similar Datasets

OmicsDI is part of the ELIXIR infrastructure

Tweets