New Drug to Reverse Paralysis

New class of drugs helps reverse paralysis after a single injection in mice with spinal cord injury, by harnessing the “dancing molecules” as per a study at Northwestern University, published in the journal Science.

“Our research aims to find a therapy that can prevent individuals from becoming paralyzed after major trauma or disease. For decades, this has remained a major challenge for scientists because our body’s central nervous system, which includes the brain and spinal cord, does not have any significant capacity to repair itself after injury or after the onset of a degenerative disease,” says Prof Samuel I Stupp of Northwestern University, who led the study.

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Paralysis is a condition where there is a loss of muscle function as well as sensory loss, which can occur due to damage to the brain or spinal cord. Paralysis treatment involves supportive care and rehabilitation.

‘New class of drugs helps reverse paralysis after a single injection in mice with spinal cord injury, thereby harnessing hope for humans. ’

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The study team administered a single injection of the new therapy that allowed the animals to regain the ability to walk only four weeks after a single injection of the treatment.

The Dancing Molecules

It was observed that the injected liquid therapy immediately formed a network of nanofibres that matched the structure around the spinal cord. However, the difficulty aroused as to how this therapy would further communicate with the body’s cells.

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It is known that the neuron receptors and other cells continually move around which reinforces the mimicking tissue structure around the spinal cord to match the motion of the cellular receptors with a fine-tune.

“The key innovation in our research, which has never been done before, is to control the collective motion of more than 100,000 molecules within our nanofibres. By making the molecules move, ‘dance’ or even leap temporarily out of these structures, known as supramolecular polymers, they are able to connect more effectively with receptors,” says Stupp.

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The team anticipates the start of human trials for this breakthrough therapy at the earliest by seeking the FDA [the United States Food and Drug Administration] approval. This regenerative therapy opens new doors of treatment to various other neurodegenerative diseases and paralytic conditions.

Source-Medindia

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