Basic study on brain-cell transplantation from a clinical point of view

本研究通过免疫组织化学、神经化学、神经生理学和行为学分析，证实了细胞悬浮法移植入海马的胎儿中颚细胞能够在成年寄主脑内存活、释放出纤维并释放5-羟色胺，恢复寄主脑功能。从中缝细胞的传出功能来看，移植的中缝细胞可能被认为是海马内中缝核。然而，也证明了这些中缝细胞不受正常传入控制。需要进一步的研究来回答正常的传入控制是否在长时间内发展。本研究还表明，尽管存在水肿本身和颅内压升高，但将胎儿中缝细胞移植到与脑积水间质水肿相关的宿主脑内可以存活并释放出纤维。此外，结果表明，就脑积水间质水肿而言，水肿本身可能不仅是移植的易感性，而且为移植细胞的存活提供了更有益的环境。该移植方法可作为一种体内培养系统，用于评估不同病因性水肿相关的不同环境对细胞存活率和纤维生长的作用。

The present study demonstrated, by means of immunohistochemical, neurochemical, neurophysiological as well as behavioral analysis, that fetal raphe cells transplanted into the hippocampus with a cell-suspension method can survive, give off fiber-outgrowth and release 5-HT in the adult host brain, and restore host brain functions. It was suggested that transplanted raphe cells may be regarded as an intrahippocampal raphe nucleus from a view of their efferent function. However, it was also demonstrated that these raphe cells were not under normal afferent controls. Further studies are necessary to answer whether normal afferent controls develop over a prolonged period of time. The present study also demonstrated that fetal raphe cells transplanted into the host brain associated with hydrocephalic interstitial edema can survive and give off fiber-outgrowth in spite of the presence of edema itself and increased intracranial pressure. Furthermore, the results indicated that, as far as hydrocephalic interstitial edema is concerned, the edema per se may not only be just susceptible of transplantation but provide more useful environment for survival of transplanted cells. The transplantation method would be useful as an in vivo culture system to evaluate the role of differential environments associated with edema of diverse etiology on cell survivability and fiber-outgrowth.