Bridging spinal cord injuries

Journal of Biology, 2008 · DOI: 10.1186/jbiol89 · Published: October 15, 2008

Spinal Cord Injury Regenerative Medicine Neurology

Simple Explanation

One approach to repairing spinal cord injuries involves creating cellular bridges to encourage axon regeneration across the damaged area. The type of cells used for these bridges is critical; some cells integrate well and promote regeneration, while others can hinder recovery and increase pain. Recent research has shown that specific types of astrocytes, derived from progenitor cells, can either support regeneration or, conversely, increase pain sensitivity after spinal cord injury.

Study Duration

Not specified

Participants

Not specified

Evidence Level

Review

Key Findings

1
Certain astrocytes derived from glial-restricted precursors treated with BMP-4 promote spinal cord repair by integrating into host tissue, suppressing scar formation, and encouraging axon regeneration.
2
Astrocytes derived from the same precursors but treated with CNTF do not support regeneration, integrate poorly, and induce allodynia.
3
Grafts of the wrong type of glial cells can produce allodynia.

Research Summary

The review discusses the concept of using cellular bridges to repair spinal cord injuries, focusing on the challenges and potential of using different types of glial cells. It highlights research identifying specific types of astrocytes that can either promote regeneration or increase pain sensitivity, emphasizing the importance of cell selection for effective spinal cord repair. The findings suggest that while cell grafting holds promise, careful selection and manipulation of glial cells are essential to avoid adverse effects like allodynia and to maximize the potential for functional recovery.

Practical Implications

Cell Source Development

Further research is needed to determine if the beneficial astrocytes can be derived from embryonic stem cells or induced pluripotent stem cells from the patient, avoiding immunosuppression issues.

Combination Therapies

Grafting cells to suppress scarring and provide a bridge will likely be an important component of a successful combinatorial treatment for spinal cord injury.

Refined Cell Selection

Careful selection and manipulation of glial cells are essential to avoid adverse effects like allodynia and maximize the potential for functional recovery.

Study Limitations

1
Current work involves transplantation at the time of injury, which will be difficult to achieve in human patients.
2
It is not clear from either paper why this might have happened, but Davies and colleagues suggest that activation of microglia might be involved.
3
The findings do not lead immediately to a treatment applicable to injured humans.

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