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Stem cell therapy combined with luteolin alleviates experimental neuropathy

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Abstract

Neuropathic pain is a chronic condition that causes long-term burning sensations. Despite significant efforts, current treatments for neuropathic pain are ineffective in curing the condition, which means new therapeutic options must be developed. One such option is the use of stem cell therapy in combination with anti-inflammatory herbal components, which has shown promise in treating neuropathic pain. The study aimed to investigate the effects of bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells (BM-MSCs) with luteolin on sensory deficits and pathological changes in a neuropathic model. The results showed that luteolin, either alone or in combination with BM-MSCs, effectively reduced sensory deficits related to mechanical and thermal hypersensitivity. In addition, luteolin alone and combined with BM-MSCs reduced oxidative stress in neuropathic rats and inhibited cellular responses, particularly reactive astrocytes. The study concluded that combining luteolin and BM-MSCs may offer an effective therapeutic strategy for patients with neuropathic pain, although further research is needed.

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Data availability

The datasets used for analysis in this study are available upon request from the corresponding author.

Code availability

Not applicable.

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Acknowledgements

This investigation was funded by Vice-Chancellor for Research and Technology, Mashhad University of Medical Sciences (MUMS), Mashhad, Iran (971711).

Funding

This investigation was funded by Vice-Chancellor for Research and Technology, Mashhad University of Medical Sciences (MUMS), Mashhad, Iran (971711). This result is extracted from a M.D. thesis.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Neuroscience Research Center, Mashhad University of Medical Sciences, Mashhad, Iran

    Sajad Sahab Negah, Saeideh Nemati & Fatemeh Forouzanfar

  2. Department of Neuroscience, Faculty of Medicine, Mashhad University of Medical Sciences, Mashhad, Iran

    Sajad Sahab Negah & Fatemeh Forouzanfar

  3. Shefa Neuroscience Research Center, Khatam Alanbia Hospital, Tehran, Iran

    Mehrdad Hajinejad

  4. Student Research Committee, Mashhad University of Medical Sciences, Mashhad, Iran

    Mehrdad Hajinejad & Seyyed Mohamad Javad Mahdipour Roudbary

  5. Department of Anatomy and Cell Biology, School of Medicine, Mashhad University of Medical Sciences, Mashhad, Iran

    Mehrdad Hajinejad

Authors
  1. Sajad Sahab Negah
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  2. Mehrdad Hajinejad
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  3. Saeideh Nemati
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  4. Seyyed Mohamad Javad Mahdipour Roudbary
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  5. Fatemeh Forouzanfar
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Contributions

Sajad Sahab Negah and Fatemeh Forouzanfar designed the experiment. Sajad Sahab Negah, Fatemeh Forouzanfar, Mehrdad Hajinejad, Saeideh Nemati, and Seyyed Mohamad Javad Mahdipour Roudbary, did the experiments. Sajad Sahab Negah, Fatemeh Forouzanfar and Mehrdad Hajinejad wrote the paper. Fatemeh Forouzanfar and Sajad Sahab Negah prepared the final draft of the paper.

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Fatemeh Forouzanfar.

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Ethics approval

The Ethical Committee of MUMS approved the study (971711; ethics approval code: IR.MUMS.MEDICAL.REC.1398.270).

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The authors have no conflicts of interest to disclose in this study.

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Negah, S.S., Hajinejad, M., Nemati, S. et al. Stem cell therapy combined with luteolin alleviates experimental neuropathy. Metab Brain Dis 38, 1895–1903 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11011-023-01206-6

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11011-023-01206-6

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