الفهرس 
Histopathology of Peripheral Nerve Injury & RegenerationOnly 14 pages are availabe for public view
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Abstract
Background & objectives: Despite surgical advances, recovery of peripheral nerve injuries has often been poor, leading to irreversible impairment. This study aimed to differentiate adipose-derived stem cells (ASCs) into Schwann-like cells in vitro, and assess their role versus undifferentiated ASCs in the regeneration of crushed sciatic nerves in adult male albino rats. Materials & Methods: ASCs were isolated, cultured and differentiated. We performed a simple, less costly method to differentiate ASCs, into Schwann-like cells. Differentiated Schwann-like cells adopted a spindle-like morphology, 87.9% of the cells became GFAP positive and 90.4% became positive to S-100. Forty rats, weighing 200-250 gm, were randomly divided into 4 equal groups. group I (control) was subjected to sham operation. group II was subjected to crush injury of the left sciatic nerve. group III & IV were subjected to crush injury with local transplantation of ASCs and differentiated Schwann-like cells respectively. Four weeks later, we studied the nerves using H&E and Masson’s Trichrome stain. Immuno-histochemical studies using S-100, together with morphometric and statistical studies were also done. Results: group II showed thin discontinuous nerve fibers with proliferation of SCs. Significant increase in Masson’s Trichrome area percentage, and significant decrease in S-100 immune reaction were noted as well. Both Groups III & IV showed thicker, more packed nerve fibers with significant decrease in Masson’s Trichrome area percentage compared to group II. Moreover, group IV revealed better axonal regeneration and statistically significant increase as regard S-100, compared to group III. Conclusion: Our study suggests that differentiated Schwann-like cells might have a more beneficial role than ASCs, for treatment of peripheral nerve injuries.