Figure 3.

Lesion paradigm and experimental procedures. (A) Unilateral spinal cord resection of 1.5–2 mm was performed at the level of C5 in rats. Schwann cell-seeded alginate hydrogel was transplanted to the lesion site. Under the control of tetracycline regulatory promoter, caudally injected AAV5 expressing BDNF. Studies have demonstrated a significant increase in the number of regenerating axons and myelination. (A1) Cross-sectional and (A2) longitudinal view of the capillary lumen. (B) Spinal cord hemisection lesion (arrowhead); (C) alginate scaffold for SCs (white arrow); (D) AAV5 (*) or SCs were injected into the caudal spinal cord (black arrow). Reproduced with permission from Liu et al.³⁸ BDNF, brain-derived neurotrophic factor; SCs, Schwann cells.