A Spatiotemporal Characterization of Neural Stem/Progenitor Cells in the Body Spinal Cord of the Leopard Gecko (Eublepharis macularius)

Abstract

The leopard gecko is an emerging model for studies of spinal cord regeneration. Populations of neural stem/progenitor cells (NSPCs) within the original tail spinal cord contribute to spinal cord regeneration following tail loss. Here, we investigated whether similar populations of NSPCs are found within the body spinal cord. Using a bromodeoxyuridine pulse-chase experiment, we determined that a population of ependymal cells are label-retaining following a 20-week chase. Next, we established that most ependymal cells express the NSPC marker SOX2. Following tail loss, we found that proliferation is significantly reduced across the body. Finally, we determined that ependymal cells of the body spinal cord represent a heterogeneous population, including neuronal-like and radial glial-like cells. Together, these data demonstrate that NSPCs of the body spinal cord closely resemble those of the tail, and support the use of the tail spinal cord as a less invasive proxy for body spinal cord injury investigations.