Fig. 2: Transplanted hADSCs survive, integrate, and differentiate into functional neurons at the injured spinal cord in SCI mouse models.

a, b Transplantation of preconditioned hADSCs promotes the recovery of locomotor capacity of SCI mice as evaluated by the BMS scoring (both primary and subscore, n = 12) at different time points. c Immunostaining of spinal cord slices from SCI mice with the astrocyte marker GFAP 8 weeks after hADSC transplantation. Representative images from the rostral, central, and caudal part of the injury site are shown in enlargements a–c as well as further enlargement 1–3, respectively. d Immunostaining of spinal cord slices from SCI mice with the neuronal marker MAP2 8 weeks after hADSC transplantation. Representative images from the rostral, central, and caudal part of the injury site are shown in enlargements a–c, respectively; scale bar: 400 and 50 μm (for the enlarged pictures). e–g Statistics for the ratio of GFAP positive astrocytes out of the total cell count, GFP-positive transplanted cells out of the total cell count and the GFAP-positive astrocytes derived from GFP-positive transplanted cells respectively, at various sites (n = 5). h, i Statistics for the ratio of MAP2-positive neurons out of the total cell count, MAP2-positive neurons out of the total transplanted cells (n = 5); j the area of cavitation at the injury site was calculated with Image-Pro Plus software (n = 12). Quantification was performed by counting at least five fields per sample for each slice and analyzed by student t test; k–o patch-clamp whole-cell recording is performed on the GFP-labeled hADSC-derived neuron-like cells in the acutely prepared spinal cord slice from SCI mice. k, l Representative bright field image of a patched cell with fluorescence illumination; m a representative trace shows that the good seal (GΩ) can be achieved; n, o the representative traces of action potentials and spontaneous synaptic currents, respectively, recorded from transplanted GFP-positive hADSCs