The Impact of Tissue Storage Conditions on Rat Olfactory Ensheathing Cell Yield and the Future Clinical Implications

Trauma causes spinal cord injury, and the devastating consequences of the injury are due to the failure of the damaged central nervous system (CNS) axons to regenerate. Previous studies have shown that olfactory ensheathing cells (OECs) are a unique type of glial cell and they can promote regeneration of CNS axons to aid recovery after spinal cord injury. Transplantation of OECs, in particular from the olfactory bulb (OB), is considered one of the most promising therapeutic strategies for the repair of CNS injuries, including spinal cord injury. Transplantation of OECs can be autologous or allogenic. Here we focused on the less invasive and more error-proof allograft approach which needs a collection of donor OB tissue for OEC production. In this study, we investigated the effects on the yield and proportions of OECs and olfactory nerve fibroblasts (ONFs) from storing OB tissue in various media for periods of 24 and 48 hours. The OEC yield contributes to the viability of a successful cell transplant. We concluded that storing OB tissue for a period longer than 24 hours negatively impacted the total cell number and subsequently the OEC population. This study provides useful information for future clinical applications.