An advance in the biology of stem cells has been printed in 3D in Minnesota, and the laboratory results show promising for the recovery of spinal cord injury, and even reversal.
A research team in twin cities at the University of Minnesota demonstrated an innovative process that combines 3D printing, biology of stem cells and laboratory fabrics to provide a recovery of spinal cord injuries.
There is currently no way to completely reverse damage and paralysis. An important challenge is the death of nerve cells and the inability that nerve fibers grow again at the site of the lesion. This new research addresses this problem by building a bridge.
The team created a single 3D printed frame for laboratory organs, called organoid scaffolding, with microscopic channels. These channels are populated with ‘spinal neural progenitor cells’ derived from adult stem cells in humans, which have the ability to divide and differentiate into specific types of mature cells.
“We use the 3D printed channels of the scaffolding to direct the growth of stem cells, which guarantees that the new nerve fibers grow in the desired way,” said Guebum Han PHD, a former mechanical engineering researcher at the University of Minnesota and first author of the article published in Advanced Healthcare Materials, a scientific newspaper reviewed by Peer.
“This method creates a retransmission system that when placed in the spinal cord overlooks the damaged area.”
In the study, financed by the NIH, the state of spinal cord injury of the State of Minnesota and the Traumatic Cerebral Injury Research Program, and the Spinal Mord Society, the researchers transplanted these scaffolding to rats with spinal cords that were completely cut.
The cells differentiated successfully in the neurons and extended their nerve fibers in both directions, network (towards the head) and flow (towards the tail), to form new connections with the existing nerve circuits of the host.
The new nerve cells were perfectly integrated into the spinal cord tissue over time, which led to a significant functional recovery in the rats.
Great advances:
• Woman who is given a new trachea printed in 3D in the world first
• Blood stem cells cultivated in laboratory could replace bone marrow donations for transplants
“Regenerative medicine has caused a new era in the investigation of spinal cord injuries,” said Ann Parr, a neurosurgery professor at the University of Minnesota. “Our laboratory is excited to explore the future potential of our ‘spinal medulla” for clinical translation. “
While research is in its initial stages, it offers a new way of hope for people with spinal cord injuries, and the team hopes to expand production and continue to develop this combination of technologies.
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