Tenotomy prevents the functional improvement of a muscle reinnervated with a chronically severed nerve

• Published in: Journal of neuroscience research Vol. 40; no. 3; p. 343
• Main Authors: Carobi, C, Brunetti, O
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States 15-02-1995
• Subjects: Animals; Male; Muscle Fatigue; Muscle, Skeletal; Muscles - innervation; Muscles - pathology; Nerve Fibers - pathology; Nerve Regeneration; Rats; Rats, Wistar
• DOI: 10.1002/jnr.490400308
• ISSN: 0360-4012

During the early stages of nerve implantation, we followed the dynamic properties of the lateral gastrocnemius muscle of the rat, reinnervated with an acutely or chronically severed peroneal nerve. The aim of this study was to ascertain whether 1) the better functional recovery of a muscle reinnervated by a chronically severed foreign nerve is present from the onset of reinnervation, and 2) whether such functional improvement is due to the conditioning lesion effect. Our results indicate that better functional recovery is already apparent one week after nerve implantation, and it is due to the conditioning lesion effect, since tenotomy prevents such improvement. The tenotomy effect underlines the fact that some environmental factors concerning the target tissue, and not only the predegenerated nerve, are involved in the conditioning effect.