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Recovery of motor function after traumatic spinal cord injury by using plasma-synthesized polypyrrole/iodine application in combination with a mixed rehabilitation scheme

  • Clinical Applications of Biomaterials
  • Original Research
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Abstract

Traumatic spinal cord injury (TSCI) can cause paralysis and permanent disability. Rehabilitation (RB) is currently the only accepted treatment, although its beneficial effect is limited. The development of biomaterials has provided therapeutic possibilities for TSCI, where our research group previously showed that the plasma-synthesized polypyrrole/iodine (PPy/I), a biopolymer with different physicochemical characteristics than those of the PPy synthesized by conventional methods, promotes recovery of motor function after TSCI. The present study evaluated if the plasma-synthesized PPy/I applied in combination with RB could increase its beneficial effects and the mechanisms involved. Adult rats with TSCI were divided into no treatment (control); biopolymer (PPy/I); mixed RB by swimming and enriched environment (SW/EE); and combined treatment (PPy/I + SW/EE) groups. Eight weeks after TSCI, the general health of the animals that received any of the treatments was better than the control animals. Functional recovery evaluated by two scales was better and was achieved in less time with the PPy/I + SW/EE combination. All treatments significantly increased βIII-tubulin (nerve plasticity) expression, but only PPy/I increased GAP-43 (nerve regeneration) and MBP (myelination) expression when were analyzed by immunohistochemistry. The expression of GFAP (glial scar) decreased in treated groups when determined by histochemistry, while morphometric analysis showed that tissue was better preserved when PPy/I and PPy/I + SW/EE were administered. The application of PPy/I + SW/EE, promotes the preservation of nervous tissue, and the expression of molecules related to plasticity as βIII-tubulin, reduces the glial scar, improves general health and allows the recovery of motor function after TSCI.

The implant of the biomaterial polypyrrole/iodine (PPy/I) synthesized by plasma (an unconventional synthesis method), in combination with a mixed rehabilitation scheme with swimming and enriched environment applied after a traumatic spinal cord injury, promotes expression of GAP-43 and βIII-tubulin (molecules related to plasticity and nerve regeneration) and reduces the expression of GFAP (molecule related to the formation of the glial scar). Both effects together allow the formation of nerve fibers, the reconnection of the spinal cord in the area of injury and the recovery of lost motor function. The figure shows the colocalization (yellow) of βIII-tubilin (red) and GAP-43 (green) in fibers crossing the epicenter of the injury (arrowheads) that reconnect the rostral and caudal ends of the injured spinal cord and allowed recovery of motor function.

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Acknowledgements

This work was supported by the Instituto Mexicano del Seguro Social (IMSS) [FIS/IMSS/PROTG16/1603, 2016]; Stephanie Sánchez-Torres received a scholarship from CONACyT [422267] and IMSS [029-2012]; Dr. Hermelinda Salgado-Ceballos thanks the IMSS Foundation for the grant of excellence granted.

Funding

The authors thank the technical support provided by the histotechnologist María del Carmen Baltazar Cortés.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Instituto Mexicano del Seguro Social, Unidad de Investigación Médica en Enfermedades Neurológicas, Hospital de Especialidades, Centro Médico Nacional Siglo XXI. Av. Cuauhtémoc 330, Col. Doctores, México City, CP, 06720, México

    Stephanie Sánchez-Torres, Sandra Orozco-Suárez, Laura Álvarez-Mejía, Vinnitsa Buzoianu-Anguiano & Hermelinda Salgado-Ceballos

  2. Doctorate in Biological and Health Sciences, Universidad Autónoma Metropolitana, Iztapalapa, Mexico City, CP, 09340, Mexico

    Stephanie Sánchez-Torres & Pablo Damián-Matsumura

  3. Proyecto Camina A.C. Research Center, Mexico City, CP, 14050, Mexico

    Stephanie Sánchez-Torres, Rodrigo Mondragón-Lozano, Omar Fabela-Sánchez, Carlos Orozco-Barrios, Angélica Coyoy-Salgado, Cristian González-Ruiz, Laura Álvarez-Mejía & Hermelinda Salgado-Ceballos

  4. Departamento de Neuroquímica, Instituto Nacional de Neurología y Neurocirugía, Manuel Velasco Suárez S.S.A, Mexico city, CP, 14269, Mexico

    Araceli Díaz-Ruíz & Camilo Ríos

  5. Departamento de Física, Instituto Nacional de Investigaciones Nucleares. Carretera Mexico-Toluca, km 36.5, Ocoyoacac, State of Mexico, CP, 52750, Mexico

    María G. Olayo, Guillermo J. Cruz & Laura Álvarez-Mejía

  6. Departamento de Física, Universidad Autónoma Metropolitana, Mexico City, CP, 09340, Mexico

    Roberto Olayo, Juan Morales & Axayacatl Morales-Guadarrama

  7. CONACyT-Instituto Mexicano del Seguro Social, Unidad de Investigación Médica en enfermedades Neurológicas, Hospital de Especialidades, Centro Médico Nacional Siglo XXI, Mexico City, Mexico

    Rodrigo Mondragón-Lozano, Carlos Orozco-Barrios & Angélica Coyoy-Salgado

  8. Departamento de Ingeniería Eléctrica, Universidad Autónoma Metropolitana, San Rafael Atlixco 186, 09340, Iztapalapa, CDMX, México

    Omar Fabela-Sánchez

  9. Catedrático CONACyT-Centro de Investigación en Química Aplicada, Enrique Reyna H. No. 140, San José de los Cerritos, Saltillo, Coahuila, 25294, México

    Omar Fabela-Sánchez

  10. Escuela Superior de Medicina-Instituto Politécnico Nacional, Mexico City, Mexico

    Cristian González-Ruiz

Authors
  1. Stephanie Sánchez-Torres
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  2. Araceli Díaz-Ruíz
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  18. Hermelinda Salgado-Ceballos
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Contributions

The manuscript was written through contributions of all authors. All authors have given approval to the final version of the manuscript.

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Hermelinda Salgado-Ceballos.

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Sánchez-Torres, S., Díaz-Ruíz, A., Ríos, C. et al. Recovery of motor function after traumatic spinal cord injury by using plasma-synthesized polypyrrole/iodine application in combination with a mixed rehabilitation scheme. J Mater Sci: Mater Med 31, 58 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10856-020-06395-5

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