Spinal cord injury (SCI) produces excess reactive oxygen species (ROS) that can exacerbate secondary injury and lead to permanent functional impairment. Hypothesizing that cerium oxide nanoparticles (CONPs) as an effective ROS scavenger may offset this damaging effect, it is first demonstrated in vitro that CONPs suppressed inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS) generation and enhanced cell viability of hydrogen peroxide (H₂O₂)‐insulted cortical neurons. Next, CONPs are administered at various does (50–4000 µg mL⁻¹) to a contused spinal cord rat model and monitored the disease progression for up to eight weeks. At one day postinjury, the number of iNOS+ cells decreases in the treated groups compared with the control. At one week, the cavity size and inflammatory cells are substantially reduced, and the expression of proinflammatory and apoptotic molecules is downregulated with a concurrent upregulation of anti‐inflammatory cytokine. By eight weeks, the treated groups show significantly improved locomotor functions compared with the control. This study shows for the first time that injection of optimal‐dosed CONPs alone into contusion‐injured spinal cord of rats can reduce ROS level, attenuate inflammation and apoptosis, and consequently help locomotor functional recovery, adding a promising and complementary strategy to the other treatments of acute SCI.

中文翻译：

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注射最佳剂量氧化铈纳米颗粒对大鼠脊髓挫伤的功能恢复

脊髓损伤 (SCI) 会产生过量的活性氧 (ROS)，从而加剧继发性损伤并导致永久性功能损伤。假设氧化铈纳米颗粒（CONP）作为有效的 ROS 清除剂可以抵消这种破坏作用，首次在体外证明 CONP 可以抑制诱导型一氧化氮合酶（iNOS）的生成并增强过氧化氢（H 2 O ₂）_的细胞活力-侮辱皮质神经元。^{接下来，以不同剂量（50–4000 µg mL -1} ）对脊髓挫伤大鼠模型施用 CONP ，并监测疾病进展长达八周。受伤后一天，与对照组相比，治疗组的 iNOS+ 细胞数量减少。一周后，空腔大小和炎症细胞显着减少，促炎和凋亡分子的表达下调，同时抗炎细胞因子上调。到八周时，与对照组相比，治疗组的运动功能显着改善。这项研究首次表明，将最佳剂量的 CONP 单独注射到大鼠挫伤脊髓中可以降低 ROS 水平，减轻炎症和细胞凋亡，从而有助于运动功能恢复，为其他治疗增添了一种有前景的补充策略急性 SCI。