Protective effects of BDNF overexpression bone marrow stromal cell transplantation in rat models of traumatic brain injury.

Bone marrow stromal cells (MSCs) were used as cell therapy for various diseases in recent years. Some reports showed that transplanted MSCs promote functional recovery in animal models of brain trauma. But other studies indicate that tissue replacement by this method may not be the main source of therapeutic benefit. Neurotrophic factors such as brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) therapeutic potential may contribute to the recovery of function after trauma. Our previous study showed that BDNF-MSCs could promote the survival of neurons in neuronal injured models in vitro. The present study was undertaken to explore the therapeutic effects of MSCs transfected with BDNF in vivo. After intraventricular injection of MSCs-BDNF, BDNF levels were increased significantly in cerebrospinal fluid by ELISA. Further studies showed that treatment of traumatic brain injury with MSCs-BDNF could attenuate neuronal injury as measurement of biological behavior assessment. These studies demonstrate that by increasing the brain concentration of BDNF, intraventricularly transplanted MSCs-BDNF might play an important role in the treatment of traumatic brain injury and might be an optional therapeutic strategy.