Evidence for a haematogenous origin of some of the macrophages appearing in the spinal cord of the rat after dorsal rhizotomy

Abstract

A single dose of colloidal carbon was given intravascularly to young adult rats in order to label circulating monocytes. Two days after injection dorsal rhizotomies were performed on the fifth to eighth cervical nerves on the right side. The rats were killed 1, 3, 4 and 8 days later. Electron microscopic examination of the spinal cord showed wide-spread tissue degeneration on the operated side in the dorsolateral fasciculus, the dorsal horn and the dorsal neuronal white column, the changes in the last named being the most severe. A variety of non-neuronal elements was found in the dorsolateral fasciculus and dorsal horn. These included astrocytes, oligodendrocytes, microglia-like cells, plasma cells, mast cells, polymorphonuclear leucocytes, monocytes and macrophages. Monocytes and macrophages were most common 3 and 4 days after operation. Some of these cells carried intracytoplasmic carbon particles. Carbon-labelled monocytes were observed in blood vessel lumina, perivascularly and in the neuropil. Monocytes crossing blood vessel walls were also encountered, indicating that the neuropil monocytes were derived from circulating cells. Macrophages were characterized by pleomorphic phagosomes which seemed to be composed largely of myelin remnants. The presence of carbon particles in their cytoplasm, and also their general similarity to monocytes, suggested that they originated from the latter. Local microglial cells were considered to be another source of macrophages. Indeed, there were present some microglia-like cells which were regarded as 'activated microglia' as they showed morphological resemblances to microglia on the one hand and to macrophages on the other. In particular their cytoplasm always included phagosomes. It is concluded that the macrophages which appear in the altered spinal cord following rhizotomy are derived both from circulating monocytes and from indigenous microglia.