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67th Annual Meeting of the German Society of Neurosurgery (DGNC)
Joint Meeting with the Korean Neurosurgical Society (KNS)

German Society of Neurosurgery (DGNC)

12 - 15 June 2016, Frankfurt am Main

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Time- and force-dependent Erythropoietin-receptor and Erythropoietin expression after spinal cord contusion lesions in adult rats

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  • Stephan Görden - Klinik für Neurochirurgie, Universitätsklinikum Schleswig Holstein, Campus Kiel, Germany
  • Gesa Cohrs - Klinik für Neurochirurgie, Universitätsklinikum Schleswig Holstein, Campus Kiel, Germany
  • Michael Synowitz - Klinik für Neurochirurgie, Universitätsklinikum Schleswig Holstein, Campus Kiel, Germany
  • Janka Held-Feindt - Klinik für Neurochirurgie, Universitätsklinikum Schleswig Holstein, Campus Kiel, Germany
  • Friederike Knerlich-Lukoschus - Klinik für Neurochirurgie, Universitätsklinikum Schleswig Holstein, Campus Kiel, Germany

Deutsche Gesellschaft für Neurochirurgie. 67. Jahrestagung der Deutschen Gesellschaft für Neurochirurgie (DGNC), 1. Joint Meeting mit der Koreanischen Gesellschaft für Neurochirurgie (KNS). Frankfurt am Main, 12.-15.06.2016. Düsseldorf: German Medical Science GMS Publishing House; 2016. DocP 057

doi: 10.3205/16dgnc432, urn:nbn:de:0183-16dgnc4322

Published: June 8, 2016

© 2016 Görden et al.
This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License. See license information at http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/.

Outline

Text

Objective: Erythropoetin (EPO) is known to mediate neuroprotection in a variety of central nervous system disorders, including spinal cord injury (SCI). Regarding SCI, the underlying cellular mechanisms are not well understood. The aim of this study was to investigate anatomical and cellular expression patterns of EPO-receptor (EPOR) and EPO in a SCI rat model of different impact severity grades.

Method: Ethical approval for this study was obtained. 34 male Long Evans rats were randomised into sham, 100-/150-/ and 200-kdyn lesion groups. Spinal cord lesions were applied on level T9 after laminectomy via Infinite-Horizon-Impactor (Lexington, KY). Locomotor ability was assessed via Basso-Beattie-Bresnahan-open-field-test. Rats were sacrificed 7, 15 and 42 d after SCI. EPOR- and EPO-expression was analysed by immunohistochemistry and real-time RT-PCR. Time and lesion-dependent immunoreactivity (IR) was quantified by densitometry. Phenotypic identification was performed by double-immunofluorescence using neuronal, glial, and progenitor markers. Additionally co-expression of EPO and EPOR with inflammatory chemokines was investigated.

Results: After SCI EPOR/EPO-IR was induced time- and lesion grade-dependent in specific spinal cord regions on mRNA and IR-level: In the ventro-lateral white matter (VWM), a neural progenitor cell niche of the adult spinal, and dorsal columns EPOR/EPO-IR exhibited prolonged induction especially after severe SCI (DPO 42 p < 0.001; 100kdyn vs. 150/200kdyn). This IR was not confined to the lesion but was also evident up to cervical levels. Ventral horns exhibited constitutive EPO-R/EPO-expression which was not induced after SCI. In the VWM EPOR/EPO-IR was colocalized with astroglial (GFAP) and progenitor cell markers (e.g. nestin, brain-lipid binding protein (BLBP)). In the ventral horns there was co-expression with neuronal markers. Real-time RT-PCR confirmed induction of EPO-R especially on the thoracic level.

Conclusions: Prolonged EPOR- and EPO-induction in spinal cord neural progenitor cells niches after SCI and constitutive neuronal expression in ventral horns provide clinically interesting targets for neuroprotective approaches after SCI.