• Ebrahim Kharazinejad, Gholamreza Hassanzadeh, Amirhossein Sahebkar, Behpour Yousefi, Reza SameniHamidHNervous System Stem Cells Research Center, Semnan University of Medical Sciences, Semnan, Iran; Department of Tissue Engineering and Applied Cell Science, School of Medicine, Semnan University of Medical Sciences, Semnan, Iran., Jamal Majidpoor, Ehsan Golchini, Vajihe Taghdiri Nooshabadi, and Mahboubeh Mousavi.
• Department of Anatomy, Faculty of Medicine, Abadan University of Medical Sciences, Abadan, Iran.
• Neuroscience. 2023 Dec 15; 535: 1121-12.

AbstractInflammasome activation and the consequent release of pro-inflammatory cytokines play a crucial role in the development of sensory/motor deficits following spinal cord injury (SCI). Immunomodulatory activities are exhibited by Schwann cells (SCs) and Wharton's jelly mesenchymal stem cells (WJ-MSCs). In this study, we aimed to compare the effectiveness of these two cell sources in modulating the absent in melanoma 2 (AIM2) inflammasome complex in rats with SCI. The Basso, Beattie, Bresnahan (BBB) test, Nissl staining, and Luxol fast blue (LFB) staining were performed to evaluate locomotor function, neuronal survival, and myelination, respectively. Real-time polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR), Western blotting, and enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) were employed to analyze the gene and protein expressions of inflammasome components, including AIM2, ASC, caspase-1, interleukin-1β (IL-1β), and IL-18. Both gene and protein expressions of all evaluated factors were decreased after SC or WJ-MSC treatment, with a more pronounced effect observed in the SCs group (P < 0.05). Additionally, SCs promoted neuronal survival and myelination. Moreover, the administration of 3 × 105 cells resulted in motor recovery improvement in both treatment groups (P < 0.05). Although not statistically significant, these effects were more prominent in the SC-treated animals. In conclusion, SC therapy demonstrated greater efficacy in targeting AIM2 inflammasome activation and the associated inflammatory pathway in SCI experiments compared to WJ-MSCs.Copyright © 2023 IBRO. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

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