Cyclic Stretch of Either PNS or CNS Located Nerves Can Stimulate Neurite Outgrowth

Vasileios Kampanis; Bahardokht Tolou-Dabbaghian; Luming Zhou; Wolfgang Roth; Radhika Puttagunta

doi:10.3390/cells10010032

Cyclic Stretch of Either PNS or CNS Located Nerves Can Stimulate Neurite Outgrowth

Cells. 2020 Dec 28;10(1):32. doi: 10.3390/cells10010032.

Authors

Vasileios Kampanis¹, Bahardokht Tolou-Dabbaghian¹, Luming Zhou², Wolfgang Roth³, Radhika Puttagunta¹

Affiliations

¹ Laboratory for Experimental Neuroregeneration, Spinal Cord Injury Center, Heidelberg University Hospital, 69118 Heidelberg, Germany.
² Laboratory of NeuroRegeneration and Repair, Hertie Institute for Clinical Brain Research, University of Tübingen, 72076 Tübingen, Germany.
³ Laboratory for Experimental Neurorehabilitation, Heidelberg University Hospital, 69118 Heidelberg, Germany.

Abstract

The central nervous system (CNS) does not recover from traumatic axonal injury, but the peripheral nervous system (PNS) does. We hypothesize that this fundamental difference in regenerative capacity may be based upon the absence of stimulatory mechanical forces in the CNS due to the protective rigidity of the vertebral column and skull. We developed a bioreactor to apply low-strain cyclic axonal stretch to adult rat dorsal root ganglia (DRG) connected to either the peripheral or central nerves in an explant model for inducing axonal growth. In response, larger diameter DRG neurons, mechanoreceptors and proprioceptors showed enhanced neurite outgrowth as well as increased Activating Transcription Factor 3 (ATF3).

Keywords: CNS; DRG; PNS; cyclic stretch; mechanical loading; neurite outgrowth.

Publication types

Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

Activating Transcription Factor 3 / metabolism
Animals
Cells, Cultured
Central Nervous System / cytology*
Female
Ganglia, Spinal / cytology*
Male
Neuronal Outgrowth
Neurons / cytology*
Rats
Tensile Strength

Substances

Activating Transcription Factor 3
Atf3 protein, rat