Identifying glial scar tissue using infrared thermography: a spinal cord injury pilot study

Authors

  • Tamara Daniela Frydman Universidad Anáhuac México, Centro de Investigación en Ciencias de la Salud (CICSA), Facultad de Ciencias de la Salud https://orcid.org/0000-0003-3207-3135
  • Margarita Gómez-Chavarín Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, Departamento de Biología Celular y Fisiología, Instituto de Investigaciones Biomédicas https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2038-668X
  • Roxana Rodríguez-Barrera Universidad Anáhuac México, Centro de Investigación en Ciencias de la Salud (CICSA), Facultad de Ciencias de la Salud https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4457-1422
  • Elisa García-Vences Universidad Anáhuac México, Universidad Anáhuac México, Centro de Investigación en Ciencias de la Salud (CICSA), Facultad de Ciencias de la Salud https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7588-3846
  • Adrián Flores-Romero Universidad Anáhuac México, Centro de Investigación en Ciencias de la Salud (CICSA), Facultad de Ciencias de la Salud https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7588-3846
  • Ivonne Hernández-Gutiérrez ,Universidad Anáhuac México, Centro de Investigación en Ciencias de la Salud (CICSA), Facultad de Ciencias de la Salud https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3040-4837
  • Gabriel Gutiérrez-Ospin Departamento de Biología Celular y Fisiología, Instituto de Investigaciones Biomédicas, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, Ciudad de México, 04510, México. https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6286-8281
  • Antonio Ibarra Universidad Anáhuac México, ,Universidad Anáhuac México, Centro de Investigación en Ciencias de la Salud (CICSA), Facultad de Ciencias de la Salud https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3040-4837

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.36105/psrua.2021v1n1.03

Keywords:

lesión de médula espinal, termografía infrarroja, cicatriz glial

Abstract

Introduction: Glial scarring after a spinal cord injury (SCI) can represent both a physical and a molecular barrier for axonal regeneration and thus its removal has been found to be helpful in the recovery process. For this removal to be feasible in humans, an efficient method is needed to clearly identify glial tissue without inflicting more damage. Objective: To evaluate infrared thermography as a tool for identifying glial scar tissue in chronic SCI. Material and methods: An exploratory experimental pilot study was performed on Sprague-Dawley rats divided into sham and SCI (T9). All animals were subjected to a baseline thermography performed after a laminectomy that was either followed by closure of the surgical planes (sham group) or injury infliction (SCI group). Five weeks later, a second thermography was performed. Afterward, the spinal cord (T8-T10) was removed and processed for glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP) immunohistochemistry, which was used as a gold standard for identifying reactive astrocytes and glial scar. All animals received the same care throughout the study. Results: The thermography did not reveal a statistical difference for the baseline values (p = 0.24); however, a significant difference in thermography values was found 5 weeks later (p = 0.01). This difference significantly correlated with astrocyte counts at the site of injury (r = –0.57; p = 0.03, Spearman’s correlation). Conclusions: Infrared thermography could be useful to evaluate the extent of glial scar after SCI.

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Published

2021-07-22

How to Cite

Frydman, T. D., Gómez-Chavarín, M., Rodríguez-Barrera, R., García-Vences, E., Flores-Romero, A., Hernández-Gutiérrez, I., Gutiérrez-Ospin, G., & Ibarra, A. (2021). Identifying glial scar tissue using infrared thermography: a spinal cord injury pilot study. Proceedings of Scientific Research Universidad Anáhuac. Multidisciplinary Journal of Healthcare, 1(1), 22–29. https://doi.org/10.36105/psrua.2021v1n1.03