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Assessing the Effect of Exercise on the Expression of Genes Associated with Macrophage Activation State and Cytokines in the Dorsal Root Ganglia after C5 Unilateral Contusion in Female Sprague Dawley Rats
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Assessing the Effect of Exercise on the Expression of Genes Associated with Macrophage Activation State and Cytokines in the Dorsal Root Ganglia after C5 Unilateral Contusion in Female Sprague Dawley Rats

Jason Wheeler and Megan Detloff
2025
url
https://doi.org/10.34945/f5x601View
Open

Abstract

cytokine exercise inflammation macrophage rat rehabilitation
STUDY PURPOSE: Neuropathic pain is a common secondary complication that develops following a spinal cord injury (SCI). Previous works have shown that physical exercise initiated in the acute, but not chronic stages after SCI can alter macrophage presence in the dorsal root ganglia (DRG) and prevent neuropathic pain development. This study aims to further investigate how macrophage activity evolves over time after SCI, and how this activity is modulated by short bouts of aerobic or strength training initiated at acute, subacute, or chronic stages of spinal cord injury. DATA COLLECTED: Adult (age > 6 weeks), female Sprague Dawley rats received a C5 unilateral contusion SCI. Beginning 1-, 2-, or 5- weeks post-injury, SCI rats underwent 5 consecutive days of either aerobic training via 20 minutes of forced wheel running or strength training via 50 repetitions of an isometric lever pulling task. Following the last exercise session, C7-C8 ipsilesional DRGs were harvested, and ribonucleic acid (RNA) was extracted from these tissues for real-time polymerase chain reaction (RT-qPCR) analysis for the expression of genes associated with macrophage polarization state and cytokine production. DATA USAGE NOTES:

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