Figure 1
Bm-MSC transplantation dramatically improved symptoms in dko mice in vivo. (a) Transplantation protocol: Bm-MSCs harvested and cultured from dko mice were repeatedly transplanted into peritoneal cavities after genome typing. (b) After transplantation of the cells, locomotor activity improved at the age of 10 weeks. Locomotor activities during 24 hours (counts per 24 hours) for three groups were the following: wild type, 17,600 ± 7,800 (n = 9); dko, 5,400 ± 2,500 (n = 23); dko/MSC, 12,400 ± 7,900 (n = 9). *P < 0.05, **P < 0.01, ***P < 0.001. (c–e) X-ray studies showing that the build of Bm-MSC-transplanted dko mice (d) was indistinguishable from that of control wild-type mice (c) at 15 weeks of age. Without the Bm-MSC treatment, dko mice were quite small and had a severe skeletal deformity (kyphosis) (e). (f) Muscles in the trunk and forelimb. Bm-MSC treatment resulted in a larger muscle volume compared with the muscle volume of dko mice without treatment. (g) Transplantation improved longevity. The median survival of dko mice and dko/MSC mice was 9 weeks (n = 40) and 29 weeks (n = 9), respectively (P < 0.01).
