Immune Cells Can Offer Clues to Develop Treatment for Spinal Cord Injuries

New study highlights that immune cells can help develop effective treatments that could one day help people to regain movement after spinal cord injury, reports a new study. The findings of the study are published in the journal Nature Communications.//

Fresh insights into how zebrafish repair their damaged nerve connections could aid the development of therapies for people with spinal cord injuries.

Mild Electric Current Reduces Side Effects of Spinal Cord Injury
Electric stimulation after spinal cord injury improves blood pressure, bowel function and gives better control of the muscles in the abdomen.

‘New study sheds light into how the immune system plays a key role in helping zebrafish nerve cells to regenerate after spinal cord injuries.’
Read More..

Tweet it Now

Scientists have found the immune system plays a key role in helping zebrafish nerve cells to regenerate after injury.

The findings offer clues for developing treatments that could one day help people to regain movement after spinal cord injury.

Large immune cells called macrophages are vital for the fish to repair damaged connections, the study found.

Spinal Cord Injury - Causes, Symptoms, Diagnosis, Treatment & Prevention
Spinal cord injury is an injury to the spinal cord that results in temporary or permanent changes in its function.

These cells usually help the body to fight off infections, but they also play a key role in wound healing.

Researchers at the University of Edinburgh found macrophages produce key molecules that dampen inflammation at the spinal injury site. This enables nerve cells to bridge the gap and repair lost connections.

Technology with Therapy Can Help Spinal Cord Injury Patients to Walk
Epidural stimulation with locomotor training show positive results in chronic spinal cord injury patients to walk again, finds a new study.

The team from the University's Centre for Discovery Brain Sciences have established a system to study the complex interactions between immune cells at a spinal injury site and how they contribute to the repair of damaged nerve connections in zebrafish.

The next step will be to understand how these molecules function in people.

Spinal Cord Injury Patients Could Benefit from V2a Interneuron Transplantation
Researchers transplanted V2a interneurons obtained from human stem cells into the spinal cords of mice to explore their possible use in spinal cord injury patients.

The study was published in Nature Communications and funded by the Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council.

Professor Catherina Becker, of the University of Edinburgh's Centre for Discovery Brain Sciences, said: "Zebrafish are interesting to us because they can regain full swimming ability after spinal cord injury. Our research is focused on understanding the factors involved in this process so that we can look for potential ways of developing treatments for people."

Source-Eurekalert