The roles of the immune response and apoptosis as potential mediators of secondary damage in spinal cord injury (SCI) are being investigated. Research is also being done to determine the effects of female gonadal steroids, which decrease during menopause, and antioxidants, such as coenzyme Q10 (CoQ10) on SCI. We hypothesized that in the absence of female gonadal steroids, which provide protection following an SCI, CoQ10 could modulate the expression of cytokines, such as tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-α and interleukin (IL)-10, besides aquaporin-4 (AQP4) water channels in the CNS, which participate in neuroinflammation, as well as the Bax and Bcl2 proteins that are involved in apoptosis at the site of injury. The spinal cord was compressed at the level of the T10 vertebrae and rats were treated by 10 mg/kg/day CoQ10 for 3 weeks after surgery. The TNF-α and IL-10 expressions were studied using an ELISA. Western blot was used to investigate the Bax/Bcl-2 ratio, AQP4. The level of TNF-α significantly decreased following the administration of CoQ10 compared with the level of IL-10. When the treatment group was compared with the OVX-SCI group, the ratio of Bax/Bcl2 significantly decreased in the groups (P < 0.01). Based on our findings, CoQ10 could be used to compensate for the absence of the neuroprotection effects provided by female gonadal steroids via reducing the inappropriate effects of the two main pathways of secondary damage in SCI apoptosis.
Keywords: Coenzyme Q10; IL-10; Ovariectomy; Spinal cord injury; TNF-α.