BDNF-Gene Transfected Schwann Cell-Assisted Axonal Extension and Sprouting on New PLA-PPy Microfiber Substrates

Open Access

Abstract

[EN] The work here reported analyzes the effect of increased efficiency of brainderived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) production by electroporated Schwann cells (SCs) on the axonal extension in a coculture system on a biomaterial platform that can be of interest for the treatment of injuries of the nervous system, both central and peripheral. Rat SCs are electrotransfected with a plasmid coding for the BDNF protein in order to achieve an increased expression and release of this protein into the culture medium of the cells, performing the best balance between the level of transfection and the number of living cells. Gene-transfected SCs show an about 100-fold increase in the release of BDNF into the culture medium, compared to nonelectroporated SCs. Cocultivation of electroporated SCs with rat dorsal root ganglia (DRG) is performed on highly aligned substrates of polylactic acid (PLA) microfibers coated with the electroconductive polymer polypyrrol (PPy). The coculture of DRG with electrotransfected SCs increase both the axonal extension and the axonal sprouting from DRG neurons compared to the coculture of DRG with nonelectroporated SCs. Therefore, the use of PLA¿PPy highly aligned microfiber substrates preseeded with electrotransfected SCs with an increased BDNF secretion is capable of both guiding and accelerating axonal growth. ; The authors acknowledge financial support from the Spanish Government's State Research Agency (AEI) through projects DPI2015-72863-EXP and RTI2018-095872-B-C22/ERDF. F.G.R. acknowledges the scholarship FPU16/01833 and the short stay mobility aid EST18/00524 of the Spanish Ministry of Universities. F.G.R. also acknowledges the hosting at the Vectorology and Anti-cancer Therapies Centre (UMR 8203 CNRS). The authors thank the Electron Microscopy Service at the UPV, where the FESEM images were obtained. ; Gisbert-Roca, F.; André, FM.; Más Estellés, J.; Monleón Pradas, M.; Mir, LM.; Martínez-Ramos, C. (2021). BDNF-Gene Transfected Schwann Cell-Assisted Axonal Extension and Sprouting on New ...