Review

Granulocyte-colony stimulating factor for stroke treatment: mechanisms of action and efficacy in preclinical studies

Jens Minnerup¹ , Sevgi Sevimli¹ and Wolf-Rüdiger Schäbitz²

¹  Department of Neurology, University of Münster, Albert-Schweitzer-Straße 33, 48149 Münster, Germany

²  Department of Neurology, University of Münster and Evangelisches Krankenhaus Bielefeld, Burgsteig 13, 33617 Bielefeld, Germany

author email corresponding author email

Experimental & Translational Stroke Medicine 2009, 1:2doi:10.1186/2040-7378-1-2

Published:	21 October 2009

Abstract

G-CSF is widely employed for the treatment of chemotherapy-induced neutropenia. Recently, neuroprotective effects of G-CSF in animal stroke models were discovered including infarct size reduction and enhancement of functional recovery. The underlying mechanisms of action of G-CSF in ischemia appear to be a direct anti-apoptotic activity in neurons and a neurogenesis inducing capacity. Additional effects may be based on the stimulation of new blood-vessel formation, the stimulation of immunocompetence and -modulation as well as on bone marrow mobilization. In addition to a discussion of these mechanisms, we will review the available preclinical studies and analyze their impact on the overall efficacy of G-CSF in experimental stroke.