Hurdles Faced by Stroke Recovery

After a stroke, a new molecule in the brain blocks the formation of new connections amid neurons, identify researchers.

In a mouse model, the UCLA researchers showed that blocking this molecule - called ephrin-A5 - induces axonal sprouting, that is, the growth of new connections between the brain's neurons, or cells, and as a result promotes functional recovery.

How to Deal with a Stroke - Signs - Symptoms - Risk Factors - Prevention
Stroke is a brain attack, which occurs when the blood supply to the brain is interrupted. It affects all age groups; according to the WHO, 15 million people are affected by stroke annually.

If duplicated in humans, the identification of this molecule could pave the way for a more rapid recovery from stroke and may allow a synergy with existing treatments, such as physical therapy.

Stroke is the leading cause of adult disability because of the brain's limited capacity for repair. An important process in recovery after stroke may be in the formation of new connections, termed axonal sprouting.

The adult brain inhibits axonal sprouting and the formation of these connections.

Stroke – Early Warning Signs - Risk Factor - Rehab - Treatment
Stroke can cause permanent disability and it is important to recognize its early warning signs to stop its progress. Early warning signs of stroke include sudden weakness of facial muscles.

In previous work the researchers found, paradoxically, that the brain sends mixed signals after a stroke-activating molecules that both stimulate and inhibit axonal sprouting.

In this present work, the researchers have identified the effect of one molecule that inhibits axonal sprouting and determined the new connections in the brain that are necessary to form for recovery.

Stroke - The Pharmacologic Management
Stroke is a condition where an artery supplying blood to the brain tissues is ruptured causing the formation of blood clot in the brain and interfering with the supply of blood and oxygen to the brain

The researchers also developed a new tissue bioengineering approach for delivering drugs to the brain after stroke.

This approach uses a biopolymer hydrogel, or a gel of naturally occurring brain proteins, to release neural repair molecules directly to the target region for recovery in stroke-the tissue adjacent to the center of the stroke.

Stroke Outcomes Can be Improved Significantly by Simple Protocols
Stroke after care, which includes simple protocols to prevent fever, hyperglycemia, and aspiration pneumonia, can lead to profound differences in patients who survive stroke.

Last, the paper also shows that the more behavioural activity after stroke, such as the amount an impaired limb is used, the more new connections are directly stimulated to form in the injured brain.

This direct link between movement patterns, like those that occur in neurorehabilitation, and the formation of new brain connections, provides a biological mechanism for the effects of some forms of physical therapy after stroke.

The study has been published online in the journal PNAS.

Source-ANI