Fig. 2

Effect of hUMSCs secreting TSG-6 on neurological recovery and brain water content following TBI. TBI mice were intracerebroventricularly injected with 10 μL of PBS, 0.5 µg rmTSG-6 or 1 µg rmTSG-6, or 2.5 × 10⁵ hUMSCs, sh-TSG-6 hUMSCs, sh-NC hUMSCs, in 10 μL of PBS at 4 h after TBI surgery. a Experimental design timeline. b Neurological function was assessed by mNSS at 12, 24, 48, and 72 h after TBI. *p < 0.05, sh-TSG-6 hUMSC group versus TBI group; ^#p < 0.05, sh-TSG-6 hUMSC group versus sh-NC hUMSC group; **p < 0.01, hUMSC group, sh-NC hUMSC group, 0.5 µg rmTSG-6 group, or 1 µg rmTSG-6 versus TBI group. c Brain water content of ipsilateral hemispheres was also measured at 24 and 48 h after TBI. d Representative photographs and quantification of apoptotic cells in the damaged cerebral cortex of mice was measured by TUNEL staining at 48 h post-TBI. Scale bar = 50 μm. All data are represented as the mean ± SD (n = 6 mice/group) and compared by one-way ANOVA, followed by the Tukey’s post hoc test. *p < 0.05, **p < 0.01, versus TBI group; ^#p < 0.05, sh-TSG-6 hUMSC group versus sh-NC hUMSCgroup