Assessment of the functional return of an injured limb in a mouse model with Bcl-2 gene absent, following the application of locomotor training.

Abstract

Introduction and objective: The impact of physical activity on human health is invaluable. Studies confirm an increase in neurotrophins in response to locomotor training. The Bcl-2 family of proteins, due to their diversity and pleiotropic actions, places damaged nerve cells on the path to apoptosis, making them a promising prospect in the treatment of neurodegenerative diseases. The aim of the experiment was to demonstrate the effect of the absence of the bcl-2 gene on the process of peripheral nerve regeneration in animals subjected to locomotor training.

Material and methods: The first group consisted of animals with an absent bcl-2 gene, 129S1/SvImJBcl2tm1Mpin/J (N=40). Group E consisted of animals subjected to sciatic nerve damage with absent bcl-2 gene (N=20), which were subjected to locomotor training, while mice in which the sciatic nerve was cut (N=20) but no training programme was applied represent group K. The evaluation used an automatic gait analysis system for mice and rats from Nodus system Cat&Walk. The study analyzed footprints on a treadmill controlling the mechanism of locomotor movements for analysis before sciatic nerve damage and at 7, 14 and 28 days after treatment.

Results: Both strains showed statistically significant differences in the experimental group compared to the untrained group, as well as a statistically significant difference in trained mice between the Bcl-2 and bl6 strains at day 14 after sciatic nerve injury, and at day 28 after sciatic nerve injury in the Bcl-2 group compared to the bl6 group, both subjected to training.

Conclusions: Regeneration of the sciatic nerve in the locomotor-trained animals studied on the basis of the Cat&Walk study showed that significant improvement occurred in the group of Bcl-2 mice subjected to locomotor training on day 14 after nerve injury.