NEURALREGENERATIONRESEARCHVolume7,Issue16,June2012www.nrronline.orgCitethisarticleas:NeuralRegenRes.2012;7(16):1220-1227.Granulocyte-macrophagecolony-stimulatingfactor-transfectedbonemarrowstromalcellsforthetreatmentofischemicstroke**☆XingjianLin1,YingdongZhang1,2,WeiguoLiu1,JingdeDong1,JieLu1,QingDi1,JingpingShi11NanjingMedicalUniversity,AffiliatedNanjingBrainHospital,DepartmentofNeurology,Nanjing210029,JiangsuProvince,China2NanjingMedicalUniversity,AffiliatedNanjingFirstHospital,DepartmentofNeurology,Nanjing210029,JiangsuProvince,ChinaAbstractAdult,male,Sprague-Dawleyratswereinjectedwithgranulocyte-macrophagecolony-stimulatingXingjianLin☆,M.D.,Associatechiefphysician,factor-transfectedbonemarrowstromalcells(GM-CSF-BMSCs)intotheischemicboundaryzoneatNanjingMedicalUniversity,24hoursafteronsetofmiddlecerebralarteryocclusion.Resultsshowedreducedinfarctvolume,AffiliatedNanjingBraindecreasednumberofapoptoticcells,improvedneurologicalfunctions,increasedangiogenicfactorHospital,DepartmentofNeurology,Nanjing210029,expression,andincreasedvasculardensityintheischemicboundaryzoneinratsthatunderwentJiangsuProvince,ChinaGM-CSF-BMSCstransplantationcomparedwiththeBMSCsgroup.ExperimentalfindingssuggestedthatGM-CSF-BMSCscouldserveasapotentialtherapeuticstrategyforischemicstrokeXingjianLinandWeiguoLiucontributedequallytothisandaresuperiortoBMSCsalone.paper.KeyWordsCorrespondingauthor:YingdongZhang,M.D.,Chiefbonemarrowstromalcells;granulocyte-macrophagecolony-stimulatingfactor;genetransfection;physician,NanjingMedicalischemicstroke;transplantation;stemcells;neuralregenerationUniversity,AffiliatedNanjingBrainHospital,DepartmentofNeurology,Nanjing210029,AbbreviationsJiangsuProvince,China;GM-CSF,granulocyte-macrophagecolony-stimulatingfactor;BMSCs,bonemarrowstromalcells;NanjingMedicalUniversity,MCAO,middlecerebralarteryocclusion;mNSS,modifiedneurologicalseverityscoresAffiliatedNanjingFirstHospital,DepartmentofNeurology,Nanjing210029,JiangsuProvi