Histological Examination of Engineered Mesenchymal Stem Cells Improve Bladder Function in Rat

Abstract

This study was undertaken to examine the effects and to investigate the relevant mechanisms of overexpressing stromal cell-derived factor-1 (SDF-1) produced by engineered mesenchymal stem cells, in a neurogenic bladder (NB) rat model. Sprague-Dawley (SD) rats (N=48) were randomly divided into 4 groups comprising 12 rats each: control group, Injury group, Injury+imMSC group, and Injury+SDF-1 eMSC group. Rats in the Injury+imMSC group were treated with imMSCs, whereas the Injury+SDF-1 eMSC group were administered SDF-1 eMSCs. After 4-weeks therapy, the bladder and pelvic nerve (PN) tissues were examined by subjecting to Masson’s trichrome staining and immunofluorescence. Administration of SDF-1 eMSC resulted in improved smooth muscle content in the bladder tissue, significantly increased β-III tubulin expression of the PN, and enhanced SDF-1 expression (P＜0.05). The bladder wall repair can be attributed to the overexpression of SDF-1 by SDF-1 eMSCs. Significantly increased SDF-1 expression was obtained in the Injury+SDF-1 eMSC group (P＜0.05). The crushed PN also showed significant recovery in the Injury+SDF-1 eMSC group (P＜0.05). In conclusion, our results indicate that SDF-1 eMSCs express more SDF-1 in vivo, thereby facilitating the repair of injured nerve and recovery of NB in rats.

Keywords

• immortalized mesenchymal stem cells
• neurogenic bladder
• sdf-1 engineered mesenchymal stem cells