Umbilical cord-derived exosomes attenuate pituitary injury following transient cerebral ischemia in rats

Elif Ünlü; Funda Elumar; Kamuran Çelik; Özlem Özmen; Simge Garlı; Ali Muhsin Güvelioğlu

doi:10.33988/auvfd.2011584

Umbilical cord-derived exosomes attenuate pituitary injury following transient cerebral ischemia in rats

Abstract

Ischemic stroke is a leading cause of mortality and long-term disability worldwide. Increasing evidence suggests that ischemic stroke may in addition to causing cerebral injury, affect the pituitary gland. Exosomes derived from human umbilical cord mesenchymal stem cells (hUC-MSC-Exos) have emerged as potential cell-free therapeutic agents. This study aimed to evaluate the effects of intravenously administered hUC-MSC-derived exosomes on ischemia-induced pituitary injury in a rat model of transient cerebral ischemia/reperfusion. Transient cerebral ischemia/reperfusion was induced by unilateral common carotid artery occlusion in 21 male Wistar Albino rats. The rats were randomly assigned to three groups (n = 7 each): ischemic control, alteplase-treated, and hUC-MSC-derived exosome-treated. Fourteen days after surgery, pituitary glands were collected for histopathological and immunohistochemical evaluation. Both treatment groups showed improved histopathological and immunohistochemical findings compared with the ischemic control group, with the most pronounced changes observed in the hUC-MSC-derived exosome-treated group (P<0.001). Exosome-treated animals exhibited lower histopathological scores, reduced vascular congestion, edema, and hemorrhage, decreased TNF-α and Caspase-3 immunoreactivity and better preservation of pituitary histoarchitecture. These findings suggest that hUC-MSC-derived exosomes may attenuate ischemia-associated pituitary injury and that they warrant further investigation to preserve pituitary integrity following cerebral ischemia.

Keywords

References

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Details

Primary Language

English

Subjects

Veterinary Surgery

Journal Section

Research Article

Authors

Elif Ünlü ^*
0009-0005-4173-7548
Türkiye

Funda Elumar
0000-0002-1640-5673
Türkiye

Kamuran Çelik
0000-0003-4763-0352
Türkiye

Özlem Özmen
0000-0002-1835-1082
Türkiye

Simge Garlı
0000-0002-9818-5212
Türkiye

Ali Muhsin Güvelioğlu
0009-0000-8180-6425
Türkiye

Early Pub Date

October 22, 2026

Publication Date

-

Submission Date

August 5, 2026

Acceptance Date

October 10, 2026

Published in Issue

Year 2026 Number: Advanced Online Publication

DOI

https://doi.org/10.33988/auvfd.2011584

IZ

https://izlik.org/JA48RU49AU

Cite

RIS / Bibtex

APA

Ünlü, E., Elumar, F., Çelik, K., Özmen, Ö., Garlı, S., & Güvelioğlu, A. M. (2026). Umbilical cord-derived exosomes attenuate pituitary injury following transient cerebral ischemia in rats. Ankara Üniversitesi Veteriner Fakültesi Dergisi, Advanced Online Publication. https://doi.org/10.33988/auvfd.2011584

AMA

1.Ünlü E, Elumar F, Çelik K, Özmen Ö, Garlı S, Güvelioğlu AM. Umbilical cord-derived exosomes attenuate pituitary injury following transient cerebral ischemia in rats. Ankara Univ Vet Fak Derg. 2026;(Advanced Online Publication). doi:10.33988/auvfd.2011584

Chicago

Ünlü, Elif, Funda Elumar, Kamuran Çelik, Özlem Özmen, Simge Garlı, and Ali Muhsin Güvelioğlu. 2026. “Umbilical Cord-Derived Exosomes Attenuate Pituitary Injury Following Transient Cerebral Ischemia in Rats”. Ankara Üniversitesi Veteriner Fakültesi Dergisi, no. Advanced Online Publication. https://doi.org/10.33988/auvfd.2011584.

EndNote

Ünlü E, Elumar F, Çelik K, Özmen Ö, Garlı S, Güvelioğlu AM (October 1, 2026) Umbilical cord-derived exosomes attenuate pituitary injury following transient cerebral ischemia in rats. Ankara Üniversitesi Veteriner Fakültesi Dergisi Advanced Online Publication

IEEE

[1]E. Ünlü, F. Elumar, K. Çelik, Ö. Özmen, S. Garlı, and A. M. Güvelioğlu, “Umbilical cord-derived exosomes attenuate pituitary injury following transient cerebral ischemia in rats”, Ankara Univ Vet Fak Derg, no. Advanced Online Publication, Oct. 2026, doi: 10.33988/auvfd.2011584.

ISNAD

Ünlü, Elif - Elumar, Funda - Çelik, Kamuran - Özmen, Özlem - Garlı, Simge - Güvelioğlu, Ali Muhsin. “Umbilical Cord-Derived Exosomes Attenuate Pituitary Injury Following Transient Cerebral Ischemia in Rats”. Ankara Üniversitesi Veteriner Fakültesi Dergisi. Advanced Online Publication (October 1, 2026). https://doi.org/10.33988/auvfd.2011584.

JAMA

1.Ünlü E, Elumar F, Çelik K, Özmen Ö, Garlı S, Güvelioğlu AM. Umbilical cord-derived exosomes attenuate pituitary injury following transient cerebral ischemia in rats. Ankara Univ Vet Fak Derg. 2026. doi:10.33988/auvfd.2011584.

MLA

Ünlü, Elif, et al. “Umbilical Cord-Derived Exosomes Attenuate Pituitary Injury Following Transient Cerebral Ischemia in Rats”. Ankara Üniversitesi Veteriner Fakültesi Dergisi, no. Advanced Online Publication, Oct. 2026, doi:10.33988/auvfd.2011584.

Vancouver

1.Elif Ünlü, Funda Elumar, Kamuran Çelik, Özlem Özmen, Simge Garlı, Ali Muhsin Güvelioğlu. Umbilical cord-derived exosomes attenuate pituitary injury following transient cerebral ischemia in rats. Ankara Univ Vet Fak Derg. 2026 Oct. 1;(Advanced Online Publication). doi:10.33988/auvfd.2011584