Immunohistochemical Evaluation of Spinal Cord Injuries Treated with Amniotic Membrane

Spinal cord injury (SCI) severely disrupts central nervous system (CNS) function by interrupting sensory and motor signal transmission, often resulting in permanent deficits due to the formation of a glial scar. Although the amniotic membrane (AM) is derived from the human placenta and is a promising biomaterial, its efficacy in treating SCI remains unexplored. This study investigates the therapeutic potential of AM fragments in a surgically induced acute SCI model in rats, focusing on preserving tissue integrity and modulating astrocyte distribution and reactivity. SCI was experimentally induced by a drop-weight mini-guillotine model in rats, which were subsequently allocated into three groups: Control (C), Injury (I), and Amniotic Membrane (AM), where a 4 cm² AM fragment was applied over the lesion. Animals were euthanized after 28 days for histological and immunohistochemical analysis of the T9-T10 region, specifically to assess Glial Fibrillary Acidic Protein (GFAP) expression and identify reactive astrocytes. The application of AM significantly preserved nervous tissue structure. The cystic cavity area in the AM group (9.00 ± 7.65) was drastically lower than in the Injury group (41.80 ± 11.30). Crucially, the AM fragments attenuated the progression of nervous tissue degeneration, limiting cavitation and glial scar formation while reducing astrocytic reactivity. These findings establish AM as a viable and effective scaffold for acute SCI treatment.