| dc.description.abstract | Peripheral nerve injuries lead to significant changes in the dorsal root ganglia, where the cell bodies of the
damaged axons are located. The sensory neurons and the surrounding satellite cells rearrange the
composition of the intracellular organelles to enhance their plasticity for adaptation to changing
conditions and responding to injury. Meanwhile, satellite cells acquire phagocytic properties and work
with macrophages to eliminate degenerated neurons. These structural and functional changes are not
identical in all injury types. Understanding the cellular response, which varies according to the type of
injury involved, is essential in determining the optimal method of treatment. In this research, we
investigated the numerical and morphological changes in primary sensory neurons and satellite cells in
the dorsal root ganglion 30 days following chronic compression, crush and transection injuries using
stereology, high-resolution light microscopy, immunohistochemistry, and behavioral analysis techniques.
Electron microscopic methods were employed to evaluate ne structural alterations in cells. Stereological
evaluations revealed no statistically signicant difference in terms of mean sensory neuron numbers (p >
0.05), although a signicant decrease was observed in sensory neuron volumes in the transection and
crush injury groups (p < 0.05). Active caspase-3 immunopositivity increased in the injury groups
compared to the sham group (p < 0.05). While crush injury led to desensitization, chronic compression
injury caused thermal hyperalgesia. Electromyography parameters exhibited a significant decrease in the
compression and crush injury groups compared to the sham group (p < 0.05). Macrophage infiltration
were observed in all injury types. Electron microscopic results revealed that the chromatolysis response
was triggered in the sensory neuron bodies from the transection injury group. An increase in organelle
density was observed in the perikaryon of sensory neurons after crush-type injury. This indicates the
presence of a more active regeneration process in crush-type injury than in other types. The effect of
chronic compression injury is more devastating than that of crush-type injury, and the edema caused by
compression significantly inhibits the regeneration process. | en_US |
