The Neuroprotective Effects of Muscle-Derived Stem Cells via Brain-Derived Neurotrophic Factor in Spinal Cord Injury Model

Figure 5

(a-b) The morphological changes of MDSCs in the MNT group. MDSCs were stained with NSE. (c–f) The effects of BDNF on MDSCs. MDSCs were cultured with (c, d) and without (e, f) BDNF for six days, and NSE staining was performed (d, f). Arrows (↑) indicate neuron-like cells (). Scale bar: (a, c, e) 50 μm; (d, e, f) 20 μm. (g) The level of BDNF in culture media was measured by ELISA (). (h) The number of apoptotic cells: after incubated with or without MDSCs, the neurons were stained with Hoechst 33258, and apoptotic cells were counted (). (i) The relationship between the number of apoptotic cells and the expression of BDNF. The linear regression analysis for in vitro study showed a negative correlation between BDNF and apoptosis (,  ).