Philadelphia—It’s not that the nerves are incapable of regenerating, but that scar tissue creates a physical barrier preventing robust regrowth, suggests new research on spinal cord regeneration from The Wistar Institute here.
The study in mice showed that when fibroblasts that trigger scar tissue formation were prevented from reaching and proliferating at the site of the injured cord, axons on both sides of the injury site were able to grow and reestablish connections over a two-to three-week period. This enabled the mice to walk.
In the experimental model, care was taken to maintain the integrity of the dura enclosing the spinal cord, which limited displacement of the cord ends.
Maintaining the dura also helped block accumulation of inflammatory cells in the gap. Introducing biochemical barriers to scar formation may offer a clearer path to restoring spinal cord function than trying to regenerate lost nerves, suggested Wistar researcher Ellen Heber-Katz, PhD. “The scar eliminates the ability of neurons to regrow their axons across the injury site. It’s an absolute physical block.” Further research will explore whether chronically injured mice can recover function when scar tissue is removed, said lead author Alexander Seitz, MD. “If this can be achieved it would bring us a step nearer to a therapy for human spinal-cord injuries.” The study was published in Journal of Neuroscience Research.
Philadelphia—It’s not that the nerves are incapable of regenerating, but that scar tissue creates a physical barrier preventing robust regrowth, suggests new research on spinal cord regeneration from The Wistar Institute here.