Acute spinal cord injury in Wistar rats: Treatment with mesenchymal stem cells and dantrolene

The effect of mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) and dantrolene (DAN) was evaluated in rats with experimental acute spinal cord injury. Sixty three-month-old male Wistar rats were used, divided into five groups: MSC; DAN + MSC; DAN; positive control (PC) (trauma and placebo); negative control (NC) (no trauma). A T12 laminectomy was performed on all animals, followed by compressive trauma, with the exception of the NC group, using a stereotaxic apparatus with a 70g weight for five minutes. One hour later, the DAN + CTM and DAN groups received a single intraperitoneal dose of 10 mg/kg of DAN, and after seven days, the CTM and DAN + CTM groups received 1 million cells intravenously. Behavioural tests were performed to assess functional recovery using the BBB scale and the adapted descriptive scale method over a 30-day period. Following euthanasia, samples were collected from various organs and the spinal cord for histological evaluation in H.E. To assess spinal cord integrity, immunohistochemistry was performed using anti-NeuN. Real-time RT-PCR was also performed to assess the gene expression of neurotrophic and apoptotic factors.