Fluoro-Gold (FG) retrograde tracing.

Micrographs of FG-labeled motoneurons in spinal cord (transverse sections: A1, B1, C1, and D1; longitudinal sections: A2, B2, C2, and D2) and sensory neurons in dorsal root ganglions (transverse sections: A3, B3, C3, and D3) in the autograft group (A1–A3), NGF–CMSs/CCH group (B1–B3), NGF/CCH group (C1–C3), and CCH group (D1–D3) at 16 weeks after nerve-bridging operation. The total number of FG-labeled motoneurons and sensory neurons in each group were shown in (E) and (F). All data represent mean ± SD. *p<0.05 between autograft and others (CCH, NGF/CCH, and NGF–CMSs/CCH). ^#p<0.05 between NGF–CMSs/CCH and others (CCH and NGF/CCH). ^&p<0.05 between NGF/CCH and CCH. Scale bar = 100 µm.