Amniotic fluid derived stem cells ameliorate focal cerebral ischaemia-reperfusion injury induced behavioural deficits in mice

The present study has been designed to investigate the effect of amniotic fluid derived stem cells on focal cerebral ischaemia-reperfusion injury induced behavioural deficits in mice. Middle cerebral artery occlusion of 60 min followed by reperfusion for 7 days was employed in present study to produce ischaemia and reperfusion induced cerebral injury in mice. Assessment of cognitive behaviour was done using elevated plus maze. Assessment of neurological severity score was employed to assess motor, sensory, reflex, and balance tests in a composite manner. Adhesive-removal somatosensory test was employed to evaluate somatosensory deficit. Partial occlusion of middle cerebral artery markedly impaired memory, motor coordination, sensorimotor ability and somatosensory functions as inferred from the results of elevated plus-maze test, adhesive-removal test and neurological severity score test. Intracerebroventricular administration of amniotic fluid derived stem cells/embryonic neuronal stem cells significantly reversed the focal cerebral ischaemia-reperfusion induced behavioural deficit measured in terms of loss of short-term memory, motor coordination, sensorimotor ability and somatosensory functions. Therefore, it may be concluded that stem cells derived from amniotic fluid exert beneficial effect on the ischaemic brain to an extent comparable to the neuroprotective effect of embryonic neuronal stem cells.