Neural regrowth induced by PLGA nerve conduits and neurotrophin-3 in rats with complete spinal cord transection.

Biomaterials and neurotrophic factors represent two promising strategies for spinal cord injury repair. In this study, a combinatorial approach combining the PLGA nerve conduits and the recombinant human neurotrophin-3 (rhNT3) was utilized in a spinal cord injury animal model. After complete transection of the thoracic cord in rats, rhNT3 was administered as a single dose to the host cord caudal to a 2-mm conduit. Axonal regrowth was enhanced, as indicated by immunostaining and neurofilament-positive area measurement. Neural regrowth was further demonstrated via the retrograde tracing across the lesion. The animals implanted with the PLGA scaffold and rhNT3 exhibited significantly improved performance in BBB rating scale and grid walk tests. These observations suggest that PLGA nerve conduits combined with exogenous NT3 may serve as an alternative therapeutic approach for spinal cord injury repair. © 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Biomed Mater Res Part B: Appl Biomater, 2011.