Munteanu · Cells 2022 · systematic review · n=51 studies

Main Cations and Cellular Biology of Traumatic Spinal Cord Injury.

Level 5 - mechanism / opinion, no new human data

Systematic review of basic science, cellular mechanisms, and preclinical literature without clinical trial data

PubMed 36010579 · doi:10.3390/cells11162503 · record verified 2026-08-26

What was done

The authors conducted a systematic review following PRISMA guidelines to examine the cellular biology and pathophysiology of monovalent (sodium, potassium, lithium) and bivalent (calcium, magnesium) cations in traumatic spinal cord injury. From an initial 207 records, 51 unique articles were included and qualitatively synthesized.

What was found

The abstract reports no numerical outcome data, effect sizes, or quantitative meta-analytic measures. It qualitatively describes how cation dynamics influence protein-protein interactions, gene transcription, ion channel functions, cellular energetics (phosphorylation, oxidation), and inflammatory responses in neuronal, glial, and non-neuronal cells after spinal cord trauma.

Why it matters

Clarifying ionic shifts and cellular cation biology provides mechanistic insight into secondary neurodegeneration and identifies ion concentration balance as a therapeutic target for spinal cord repair.

Limits

The review synthesizes basic science and preclinical mechanistic studies without direct human clinical trial evidence. No quantitative meta-analysis was performed, and the body of identified literature was limited to 51 studies.

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