Self-assembling Nanofibers Heal Spinal Cords in Mice
Posted on April 10, 2008 Comments (1)
Self-assembling Nanofibers Heal Spinal Cords by Prachi Patel-Predd
Stupp and his colleagues described in a recent paper in the Journal of Neuroscience that treatment with the material restores function to the hind legs of paralyzed mice.
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The new work is the first test for the material to heal spinal cord injuries in animals. And Kessler says that it worked better than the researchers expected. The researchers stimulated a spinal cord injury in mice and injected the material 24 hours later. They found that the material reduced the size of scars and stimulated the growth of the nerve fibers through the scars. It promoted the growth of both types of nerve fibers that make up the spinal cord: motor fibers that carry signals from the brain to the limbs, and sensory fibers that carry sense signals to the brain. What is more, the material encouraged the nerve stem cells to mature into cells that create myelin–an insulating layer around nerve fibers that helps them to conduct signals more effectively.
Related: Using Bacteria to Carry Nanoparticles Into Cells – Micro-robots to ’swim’ Through Veins – Nanowired at Berkeley
Categories: Engineering, Health Care, Life Science, Nanotechnology, Research, Students
Tags: Health Care, Nanotechnology, Research
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May 19th, 2009 @ 8:20 am
“On such a small device there is little room for batteries, sensors or transmitters. So the solar cell on top delivers power, sending an electric current to both a sensor and a communication circuit…”