Neural stem cell transplantation rescues cortical damage in rhesus monkey models of traumatic brain injury

Abstract Background Cortical traumatic brain injury (TBI) is a major cause of cognitive impairment accompanied by motor and behavioural deficits. Cell transplantation is the most promising treatment, and how to keep the transplanted cells are not removed via cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) is the key problem. Methods In this study, we transplanted neural stem cells (NSCs) and simultaneously injected bFGF/EGF into the cortex (visual and sensory cortices) of rhesus monkeys with superficial TBI. Results The results showed that the transplanted NSCs did not enter the CSF and were confined to the transplantation site for at least one year. The transplanted NSCs differentiated into mature neurons that formed synaptic connections with host neurons, but glial scar formation between the graft and the host tissue did not occur. Conclusions This study is the first to explore the efficacy of transplanting NSCs into the superficial cerebral cortex of rhesus monkeys after TBI, and the results show the ability of NSCs to survive long term and differentiate into neurons, demonstrating the clinical translation potential of NSC transplantation for cortical TBI.