Trends Mol Med, 2018 · DOI: 10.1016/j.molmed.2018.04.007 · Published: June 1, 2018
Spinal cord injury leads to scar formation, involving astrocytes and fibrotic components like fibroblasts/pericytes. While astrocyte contribution has been studied extensively, the role of fibrotic components is gaining attention. A recent study found that reducing fibrotic scarring, specifically by preventing the proliferation of type A pericytes, can promote axon regeneration and improve functional recovery after spinal cord injury. The study used genetically modified mice to eliminate Ras activity in type A pericytes, inhibiting their proliferation without directly affecting neurons, thus reducing fibrotic scarring.
Modulating type A pericyte proliferation could be a promising strategy for spinal cord injury repair and recovery.
Further studies are required to confirm these findings with a prospective experimental design with predictable outcomes.
The results await validation across labs and experimental conditions before clinical translation, especially using a model in which any sparing of the axonal tract is ruled out.