Selective Calpain Inhibition Improves Functional and Histopathological Outcomes in a Canine Spinal Cord Injury Model

This study investigates the use of a calpain inhibitor, PD150606, alone and in combination with methylprednisolone sodium succinate (MPSS) to treat spinal cord injury (SCI) in dogs. The results showed that the combination of MPSS and PD150606 was more effective in preventing neurodegeneration after SCI than either treatment alone. The study suggests that early treatment with MPSS and PD150606 after acute SCI may prevent further nerve damage through calpain inhibition.

• 1
  The combined administration of MPSS+PD150606 demonstrated considerably lower neuronal loss and microglial cell infiltration than the other groups, with a significant improvement in the locomotor score.
• 2
  The increased levels of inflammatory markers (GFAP and CD11) and calcium-binding proteins (Iba1 and S100) were significantly reduced in the combination group.
• 3
  The combined treatment effectively inhibited the calpain-induced cleavage of p35, limited cdk5 activation, and inhibited tau phosphorylation.