Proteomics reveals the effect of low-intensity focused ultrasound on spasticity after spinal cord injury
Bin Wang, Hongbo Zhao, Moxian Chen, Shaochun Chen, Yehui Liao, Xin Tang, Lijuan Ao, Yao Liu
Turkish Neurosurgery 2022 · 10.5137/1019-5149.jtn.37469-21.2
Abstract
Aim To explore the efficacy and possible mechanisms of Low-intensity focused ultrasound (LIFU) in alleviating spasticity caused by Spinal cord injury (SCI). Material and methods We selected male Sprague?Dawley rats as subjects and performed transverse injuries on the T9 vertebra of their spinal cord (SC) to build SCI. On the 7th day after SCI, LIFU treatment was performed below the SCI segment once a day for 20 min, for 4 consecutive weeks. During treatment, a pressure sensor was used to assess the degree of spasticity. After treatment, the SC tissues from the treatment sites of the SCI+LIFU(-) and SCI+LIFU(+) groups were extracted, and high-throughput sequencing was performed to identify the changes in proteomics. In addition, expression of the growth associated protein 43 (Gap43) was validated by western blotting. Results The behavioral results suggested that after 2 weeks of SCI, the rats were significantly induced to have a spastic reaction (p Conclusion The results of this study showed that LIFU is an alternative treatment that can effectively relieve spastic reactions caused by SCI, possibly by reducing abnormal neuroplasticity or axon regeneration below the SCI segment.
Abstract via europepmc.
Exposures
Exposure 1: LIFU below the SCI segment
Target: spinal cord — “below the SCI segment”
Device: other named manufacturer · DOBO, Changzhou, China ✓
| Waveform | pulsed | |
|---|---|---|
| Fundamental frequency (kHz) | 1,000 | ✓✓✓ |
| Pulse duration (ms) | not reportedimplied by duty cycle ÷ PRF: 0.25 ms (not stated by the paper) | ⚑ |
| Pulse repetition frequency (Hz) | 800 | ✓✓✓ |
| Duty cycle (%) | 20 | ✓✓✓ |
| Sonication duration (s) | 1,200 | ✓✓✓⚑ |
| Free-field pressure (kPa) | not reported | |
|---|---|---|
| Free-field Isppa (W/cm²) | not reported | |
| Free-field Ispta (W/cm²) | not reported | |
| In-situ estimate | not reported | |
| In-situ pressure (kPa) | not reported | |
| In-situ Isppa (W/cm²) | not reported | |
| In-situ Ispta (W/cm²) | not reported | |
| Pressure, domain unspecified (kPa) | 680 | ✓✓✓⚑ |
1 MHz, PRF 0.8 kHz, duty cycle 20%, 20 min per day for 4 weeks, applied once daily under light isoflurane to the skin below the injury segment, starting on day 7 after SCI.
Flags from extraction
exposures[0].unspecified_domain.pressure_kpa— Reported as 'irradiation intensity, 0.68 MPa' (a pressure); converted to 680 kPa; domain and peak/peak-to-peak not stated.exposures[0].timing.sonication_duration_s— The stated 'treatment time, 20 min/d' is recorded as 1200 s; whether sonication was continuous within this time is not stated beyond the 20% duty cycle.exposures[0].timing.pulse_duration_ms— Pulse duration is not stated.n_sessions_per_subject— Daily for 4 weeks is stated but no session count; not computed.blinding— Paper says behavioural testing was done in a 'blind' manner without stating who was blinded.exposures[0].device.model— Probe described only as '1 MHz, DOBO; Changzhou, China'; no model name.exposures[0].target— Treatment site is the skin over the spinal segment below the T9 transection; spinal level not further specified in Methods (Discussion mentions lumbar and sciatic segments).