%0 Journal Article %T Enhancement of musculocutaneous nerve reinnervation after vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) gene therapy %A Pavel Haninec %A Radek Kaiser %A Vladimir Bobek %A Petr Dubovy %J BMC Neuroscience %D 2012 %I BioMed Central %R 10.1186/1471-2202-13-57 %X Immunohistochemical detection under the same conditions revealed increased VEGF in the Schwann cells of the MCN stumps transfected with the plasmid phVEGF, as opposed to control stumps transfected with only the plasmid or treated with vehiculum. The MCN stumps transfected with the plasmid phVEGF were reinnervated by moderately higher numbers of motor and sensory neurons after ETE neurorrhaphy compared with control stumps. However, morphometric quality of myelinated axons, grooming test and the wet weight index were significantly better in the MCN plasmid phVEGF transfected stumps. The ETS neurorrhaphy of the MCN plasmid phVEGF transfected stumps in comparison with control stumps resulted in significant elevation of motor and sensory neurons that reinnervated the MCN. Especially noteworthy was the increased numbers of neurons that sent out collateral sprouts into the MCN stumps. Similarly to ETE neurorrhaphy, phVEGF transfection resulted in significantly higher morphometric quality of myelinated axons, behavioral test and the wet weight index of the biceps brachii muscles.Our results showed that plasmid phVEGF transfection of MCN stumps could induce an increase in VEGF protein in Schwann cells, which resulted in higher quality axon reinnervation after both ETE and ETS neurorrhaphy. This was also associated with a better wet weight biceps brachii muscle index and functional tests than in control rats. %U http://www.biomedcentral.com/1471-2202/13/57/abstract