Tail Nerve Electrical Stimulation and Electro-Acupuncture Can Protect Spinal Motor Neurons and Alleviate Muscle Atrophy after Spinal Cord Transection in Rats

Spinal cord injury (SCI) often results in death of spinal neurons and atrophy of muscles which they govern. Thus, following SCI, reorganizing the lumbar spinal sensorimotor pathways is crucial to alleviate muscle atrophy. Tail nerve electrical stimulation (TANES) has been shown to activate the centr...

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Main Authors: Yu-Ting Zhang, Hui Jin, Jun-Hua Wang, Lan-Yu Wen, Yang Yang, Jing-Wen Ruan, Shu-Xin Zhang, Eng-Ang Ling, Ying Ding, Yuan-Shan Zeng
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Wiley 2017-01-01
Series:Neural Plasticity
Online Access:http://dx.doi.org/10.1155/2017/7351238
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author Yu-Ting Zhang
Hui Jin
Jun-Hua Wang
Lan-Yu Wen
Yang Yang
Jing-Wen Ruan
Shu-Xin Zhang
Eng-Ang Ling
Ying Ding
Yuan-Shan Zeng
author_facet Yu-Ting Zhang
Hui Jin
Jun-Hua Wang
Lan-Yu Wen
Yang Yang
Jing-Wen Ruan
Shu-Xin Zhang
Eng-Ang Ling
Ying Ding
Yuan-Shan Zeng
author_sort Yu-Ting Zhang
collection DOAJ
description Spinal cord injury (SCI) often results in death of spinal neurons and atrophy of muscles which they govern. Thus, following SCI, reorganizing the lumbar spinal sensorimotor pathways is crucial to alleviate muscle atrophy. Tail nerve electrical stimulation (TANES) has been shown to activate the central pattern generator (CPG) and improve the locomotion recovery of spinal contused rats. Electroacupuncture (EA) is a traditional Chinese medical practice which has been proven to have a neural protective effect. Here, we examined the effects of TANES and EA on lumbar motor neurons and hindlimb muscle in spinal transected rats, respectively. From the third day postsurgery, rats in the TANES group were treated 5 times a week and those in the EA group were treated once every other day. Four weeks later, both TANES and EA showed a significant impact in promoting survival of lumbar motor neurons and expression of choline acetyltransferase (ChAT) and ameliorating atrophy of hindlimb muscle after SCI. Meanwhile, the expression of neurotrophin-3 (NT-3) in the same spinal cord segment was significantly increased. These findings suggest that TANES and EA can augment the expression of NT-3 in the lumbar spinal cord that appears to protect the motor neurons as well as alleviate muscle atrophy.
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spelling doaj-art-ab28e60afe614393a10fd4d18d31bcb22025-08-20T02:20:12ZengWileyNeural Plasticity2090-59041687-54432017-01-01201710.1155/2017/73512387351238Tail Nerve Electrical Stimulation and Electro-Acupuncture Can Protect Spinal Motor Neurons and Alleviate Muscle Atrophy after Spinal Cord Transection in RatsYu-Ting Zhang0Hui Jin1Jun-Hua Wang2Lan-Yu Wen3Yang Yang4Jing-Wen Ruan5Shu-Xin Zhang6Eng-Ang Ling7Ying Ding8Yuan-Shan Zeng9Key Laboratory for Stem Cells and Tissue Engineering, Ministry of Education, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou 510080, ChinaKey Laboratory for Stem Cells and Tissue Engineering, Ministry of Education, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou 510080, ChinaDepartment of Histology and Embryology, Zhongshan School of Medicine, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou 510080, ChinaKey Laboratory for Stem Cells and Tissue Engineering, Ministry of Education, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou 510080, ChinaKey Laboratory for Stem Cells and Tissue Engineering, Ministry of Education, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou 510080, ChinaDepartment of Acupuncture, The 1st Affiliated Hospital, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, Guangdong 510080, ChinaSpinal Cord Society Research Center, Fort Collins, CO 80526, USADepartment of Anatomy, Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National University of Singapore, 117597, SingaporeDepartment of Histology and Embryology, Zhongshan School of Medicine, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou 510080, ChinaKey Laboratory for Stem Cells and Tissue Engineering, Ministry of Education, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou 510080, ChinaSpinal cord injury (SCI) often results in death of spinal neurons and atrophy of muscles which they govern. Thus, following SCI, reorganizing the lumbar spinal sensorimotor pathways is crucial to alleviate muscle atrophy. Tail nerve electrical stimulation (TANES) has been shown to activate the central pattern generator (CPG) and improve the locomotion recovery of spinal contused rats. Electroacupuncture (EA) is a traditional Chinese medical practice which has been proven to have a neural protective effect. Here, we examined the effects of TANES and EA on lumbar motor neurons and hindlimb muscle in spinal transected rats, respectively. From the third day postsurgery, rats in the TANES group were treated 5 times a week and those in the EA group were treated once every other day. Four weeks later, both TANES and EA showed a significant impact in promoting survival of lumbar motor neurons and expression of choline acetyltransferase (ChAT) and ameliorating atrophy of hindlimb muscle after SCI. Meanwhile, the expression of neurotrophin-3 (NT-3) in the same spinal cord segment was significantly increased. These findings suggest that TANES and EA can augment the expression of NT-3 in the lumbar spinal cord that appears to protect the motor neurons as well as alleviate muscle atrophy.http://dx.doi.org/10.1155/2017/7351238
spellingShingle Yu-Ting Zhang
Hui Jin
Jun-Hua Wang
Lan-Yu Wen
Yang Yang
Jing-Wen Ruan
Shu-Xin Zhang
Eng-Ang Ling
Ying Ding
Yuan-Shan Zeng
Tail Nerve Electrical Stimulation and Electro-Acupuncture Can Protect Spinal Motor Neurons and Alleviate Muscle Atrophy after Spinal Cord Transection in Rats
Neural Plasticity
title Tail Nerve Electrical Stimulation and Electro-Acupuncture Can Protect Spinal Motor Neurons and Alleviate Muscle Atrophy after Spinal Cord Transection in Rats
title_full Tail Nerve Electrical Stimulation and Electro-Acupuncture Can Protect Spinal Motor Neurons and Alleviate Muscle Atrophy after Spinal Cord Transection in Rats
title_fullStr Tail Nerve Electrical Stimulation and Electro-Acupuncture Can Protect Spinal Motor Neurons and Alleviate Muscle Atrophy after Spinal Cord Transection in Rats
title_full_unstemmed Tail Nerve Electrical Stimulation and Electro-Acupuncture Can Protect Spinal Motor Neurons and Alleviate Muscle Atrophy after Spinal Cord Transection in Rats
title_short Tail Nerve Electrical Stimulation and Electro-Acupuncture Can Protect Spinal Motor Neurons and Alleviate Muscle Atrophy after Spinal Cord Transection in Rats
title_sort tail nerve electrical stimulation and electro acupuncture can protect spinal motor neurons and alleviate muscle atrophy after spinal cord transection in rats
url http://dx.doi.org/10.1155/2017/7351238
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