Fig. 6
SCI model rat recovery improved when treated with TET3-OE. a Experimental timeline for the rat spinal cord injury (SCI) model. Eight-week-old female Sprague–Dawley rats (n = 24; 250–300 g) were randomly divided into four groups: SCI, Sham, Control, and TET3-OE. SCI was induced using Allen’s method on Day 0. Intrathecal injections (5 × 106 cells) were administered immediately after surgery. Behavioral assessments using the Basso, Beattie, and Bresnahan (BBB) locomotor rating scale were performed on Days 1, 3, 5, 7, and 14 post-surgery. On Day 14, footprint analysis was conducted, followed by euthanasia. Spinal cord tissues were collected for histology analysis. b, c Footprint analysis on Day 14 post injury showed that the TET3-OE group exhibited the most significant improvement (n = 6 rats). Representative images for each group were randomly chosen, avoiding selection of the most severe or mild cases. Data were shown as mean ± standard deviation, statistical analysis was performed using one-way ANOVA with Tukey’s HSD post-hoc test. **p < 0.01, ***p < 0.001 vs SCI group, ###p < 0.001 vs sham group, ■■■p < 0.001 vs TET3-OE group. d The Basso, Beattie, and Bresnahan score showed significant locomotion function recovery in the TET3-OE group (n = 6 rats). Data were shown as mean ± standard deviation. Statistical analysis was performed using two-way ANOVA with repeated measures, followed by Sidak’s test. *p < 0.05, **p < 0.01, ***p < 0.001 vs SCI group, ###p < 0.001 vs sham group, ■■■p < 0.001 vs Control group