Abstract: Methylprednisolone exhibits anti-in?ammatory antioxidant properties, and rosiglitazone acts as an anti-in?ammatory and antioxidant by activating peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor-γ in the spinal cord. Methylprednisolone and rosiglitazone have been clinically used during the early stages of secondary spinal cord injury. Because of the complexity and diversity of the in?ammatory process afer spinal cord injury, a single drug cannot completely inhibit in?ammation. Terefore, we assumed that a combination of methylprednisolone and rosiglitazone might promote recovery of neurological function afer secondary spinal cord injury. In this study, rats were intraperitoneally injected with methylprednisolone (30 mg/kg) and rosiglitazone (2 mg/kg) at 1 hour afer injury, and methylprednisolone (15 mg/kg) at 24 and 48 hours afer injury. Rosiglitazone was then administered once every 12 hours for 7 consecutive days. Our results demonstrated that a combined treatment with methylprednisolone and rosiglitazone had a more pronounced e?ect on attenuation of in?ammation and cell apoptosis, as well as increased functional recovery, compared with either single treatment alone, indicating that a combination better promoted recovery of neurological function afer injury.

Key words: nerve regeneration, spinal cord injury, methylprednisolone, rosiglitazone, in?ammation, drug therapy, anti-in?ammatory agents, functional recovery, neural regeneration