Central Serotonin Deficiency Impairs Recovery of Sensorimotor Abilities After Spinal Cord Injury in Rats

Spinal cord injury (SCI) presents significant rehabilitation challenges, particularly in retraining spinal circuitry. This study investigates serotonin's role in recovery after SCI using rats lacking serotonin in the brain and spinal cord. The research compared sensorimotor recovery between rats lacking serotonin (TPH2 KO) and normal rats (WT) after SCI. Results showed that TPH2 KO rats had reduced motor function recovery compared to WT rats. These findings highlight the importance of serotonin in regaining sensorimotor abilities following spinal cord injuries. The TPH2 KO rat model can be a valuable tool for further investigation into serotonin's neurorehabilitative roles.

• 1
  TPH2 KO rats exhibited a significantly higher degree of sensorimotor deficit in the tapered beam walking test (TBW) and ladder walking test (LW) compared to WT rats in the 3rd and 4th weeks after SCI.
• 2
  The recovery dynamics of hindlimb muscle tone and voluntary movements aligned with the motor performance observed in TBW and LW tests, indicating impaired recovery in TPH2 KO rats.
• 3
  Electrophysiological analysis revealed slower recovery of sensorimotor pathways in the TPH2 KO group compared to the WT group, as indicated by compound muscle action potential analysis.