Effects of NGF and Fetal Cell Transplants on Spatial Learning after Intradentate Administration of Colchicine

摘要

The study was performed to assess the effects of NGF infusion alone or in combination with fetal hippocampal transplants on recovery of function after damage to hippocampal dentate granule cells. Two groups of male Fischer-344 rats received bilateral infusions of colchicine (COLCH; 2.5 microgram/site) or artificial cerebrospinal fluid (ACSF; 0.5 microliter) through chronic indwelling cannulae into the dentate gyrus. At the time of COLCH injection, a unilateral intracerebroventricular (ICV) cannula was implanted. Morphological examination performed after behavioral testing confirmed the presence of viable transplants and COLCH-induced granule cell loss. These data demonstrate a time-dependent facilitative effect of exogenously applied NGF on functional deficiencies produced by experimentally induced neurodegeneration in the dentate gyrus of the hippocampus.