Biomaterial bridges enable regeneration and re-entry of corticospinal tract axons into the caudal spinal cord after SCI: Association with recovery of forelimb function.

ABSTRACT: Severed axon tracts fail to exhibit robust or spontaneous regeneration after spinal cord injury (SCI). Regeneration failure reflects a combination of factors, including the growth state of neuronal cell bodies and the regeneration-inhibitory environment of the central nervous system. However, while spared circuitry can be retrained, target reinnervation depends on longitudinally directed regeneration of transected axons. This study describes a biodegradable implant using poly(lactide-co-glycolide) (PLG) bridges as a carrier scaffold to support regeneration after injury. In order to detect regeneration of descending neuronal tracts into the bridge, and beyond into intact caudal parenchyma, we developed a mouse cervical implantation model and employed Crym:GFP transgenic mice. Characterizati

SUBMITTER: Pawar K 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4523232 | biostudies-literature | 2015 Oct

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature