Comparison of Protective Effects of Gelsolin with Methylprednisolone on Traumatic Spinal Cord Injury in an Animal Model

Introduction: Traumatic spinal cord injury (tSCI) is a highly devastating disease. In this study, we aimed to determine the neuroprotective effects of gelsolin (GSN) as an alternative treatment to methylprednisolone in an animal model of tSCI.
Material and Method: In this study, adult healthy New Zealand rabbits (n = 32) with an average body weight of 2–2.5 kg were utilized. The animals were distributed randomly into four groups (n = 8): control, sham, methylprednisolone, and gelsolin groups. Blood and cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) samples were collected on the 0th and 24th hours, and spinal cord samples were obtained on the 24th hour.
Results: In between the 24th-hour results of methylprednisolone and control groups, a statistical significance in terms of CSF GEL (p = 0.04), CSF IL-6 (p = 0.01), blood CAS-3 (p = 0.032), and blood IL-6 (p = 0.008) levels was found. In between the 24th-hour results of gelsolin and control groups, in terms of CSF GEL (p = 0.042) and CSF CAS-3 (p = 0.010) levels, a statistical significance was also found. There was no significant difference between methylprednisolone and gelsolin groups in terms of CSF IL-6, CAS-3, and blood GEL, IL-6, and CAS-3 levels.
Conclusion: Given these data, future studies must investigate the physiological mechanisms of gelsolin treatment in traumatic SCI, which may involve higher doses of gelsolin.

Keywords: Gelsolin, spinal cord injury, methylprednisolone