Figure 5.

Aged mice had impaired functional recovery and extended lesion length after SCI. Adult female (3–4 months) and aged female (18–22 months) BALB/c mice were subjected to a T9 laminectomy (Lam) or SCI. Functional recovery was assessed by BMS scoring over a 28 d period after SCI. Spinal cords were collected 28 dpi. A, BMS scores for 1, 3, 5, 7, 14, 21, and 28 dpi for Lam controls (n = 4) and SCI mice (n = 10–13). B, Percentage of adult and aged SCI mice that achieved an average BMS score of ≥5 at 28 dpi. C, Quantification of epicenter tissue sparing using neurofilament/EC staining (n = 4). D, Representative images of neurofilament/EC staining in injured spinal cord of adult and aged mice 1.2 mm rostral and caudal of the epicenter. Dark staining denotes intact axons and myelin sheathing. E, Lesion length from adult and aged mice (n = 4). In a separate study, adult male WT (2–4 months) and adult male IL-4Rα^KO (3–4 months) BALB/c mice were subjected to a T9 Lam or SCI. F, BMS subscore for WT and IL-4Rα^KO mice at 28 dpi (n = 8). G, Percentage of WT and IL-4Rα^KO SCI mice that achieved an average BMS score of 5 at 28 dpi (n = 8). H, Percentage of WT and IL-4Rα^KO SCI mice that achieved an average BMS score of 6 at 28 dpi (n = 8). Error bars and data points represent the mean ± SEM. Means with *p < 0.0001 are significantly different from Adult-Lam controls. Means with ^#p < 0.03 are significantly different from Adult-SCI or WT-SCI groups. Means with ⁺p = 0.07 tend to be different from Adult-SCI or WT-SCI groups.