Researchers Demonstrate New Method for Spinal Cord Tissue Repair, Health News, ET HealthWorld

Limerick: A new synthetic material created at the University of Limerick in Ireland spinal cord injury.

New Study from UL’s Bernal Institute Published in Recognized Global Journal biomaterial Research has made great strides in the area of spinal cord tissue healing.

A new hybrid biomaterial, in the form of nanoparticles, was developed at UL and builds on existing practice, according to the researchers. human tissue engineering Fields have been successfully synthesized to promote repair and regeneration after spinal cord injury.

The UL team, led by Professor Maurice N Collins, Associate Professor of Engineering at UL, and lead author Aleksandra Serafin, a PhD candidate at UL, is using a new class of scaffolding materials and a proprietary new conductive polymer composite to develop new organizational growth A generation that could advance the treatment of spinal cord injuries.
“Spinal cord injury is one of the most debilitating traumas you can sustain in your lifetime, affecting all aspects of your life,” Collins said.

“This debilitating disorder causes paralysis below the injury level and accounts for US$9.7 billion annually in SCI patient care in the United States alone. Research is key: therapies to improve patient quality of life, and research areas are turning to tissue engineering for new therapeutic strategies.

“The field of tissue engineering aims to solve the global problem of the scarcity of donated organs and tissues, where new trends are emerging in the form of electrically conductive biomaterials. Cells, especially conductive cells, are affected by electrical stimulation, such as heart cells and nerve cells,” explained Professor Collins.

The research team explains that there is growing interest in using conductive tissue-engineering scaffolds because cell growth and proliferation are improved when cells are exposed to the conductive scaffolds.

“Enhancing the electrical conductivity of biomaterials to develop such therapeutic strategies is typically through conductive components such as carbon nanotubes or commercially available conductive polymers that have been used in the field of tissue engineering. PEDOT: We are focused on adding conductive polymers such as PSS,” explains lead author Aleksandra Serafin. Aleksandra Serafin is a PhD in Science and Engineering from Bernal University and her UL.

“Unfortunately, severe limitations remain with the use of PEDOT:PSS polymer in biomedical applications. The polymer relies on the PSS component to achieve water solubility, but implanting this material into the body will result in a biochemical reaction. less compatible.

“This means that the body shows potential toxic or immunological reactions when exposed to this polymer, which is not ideal for already damaged tissue that is trying to regenerate. This severe limitation.” allows us to successfully incorporate hydrogel components to create a conductive scaffold,” she added.

New PEDOT nanoparticles (NPs) have been developed in research to overcome this limitation. Synthesis of conductive PEDOT NPs allowed us to tune the surface of NPS to achieve the desired cellular response and to allow variability in which hydrogel components could be incorporated without requiring the presence of PSS for water solubility. can be increased.

In this study, a hybrid biomaterial composed of gelatin and immunomodulatory hyaluronic acid, a material that Professor Collins has been developing for many years at UL, was combined with the novel PEDOT NPs developed for targeted spinal cord injury repair. created a biocompatible conductive scaffold for

The structure, properties, and function of these precisely engineered scaffolds for optimized performance at the site of injury, including in vivo studies conducted by Ms. Serafin during the Fulbright study using a rat spinal cord injury model. A complete study of the relationship between Research exchange with the University of California, San Diego Department of Neuroscience, who was a project partner.

“Introduction of PEDOT NPs into biomaterials increased the electrical conductivity of the samples. Moreover, the mechanical properties of the implanted materials are well suited for tissue engineering strategies in which the developed PEDOT NP scaffolds match the native mechanical values.” We need to mimic the tissue of interest in the spinal cord,” the researchers explained.

The biological responses to the developed PEDOT NP scaffolds were studied in vitro using stem cells and in vivo in an animal model of spinal cord injury. They report that excellent stem cell attachment and growth on the scaffolds was observed.

Studies have shown that trials showed greater axonal cell migration to sites of spinal cord injury implanted with PEDOT NP scaffolds, with lower levels of scarring and inflammation than injury models without scaffolds.

These results demonstrate the potential of these materials for spinal cord repair, say the research team.

“The impact of a spinal cord injury on a patient’s life is not only physical, but also psychological, as it can seriously affect a patient’s mental health, resulting in depression, Increased incidence of stress, or anxiety.

“Therefore, treating a spinal cord injury is not only about enabling patients to walk and move again, but it is about helping patients live to their fullest potential. is of great importance to research and the medical community.In addition, the overall societal impact of providing effective treatments for spinal cord injuries reduces healthcare costs associated with treating patients.

“These results are encouraging prospects for patients, and further research in this area is planned.

“Studies have shown that motor neurons at the distal end of spinal cord injury tend to have higher excitability thresholds.Future projects will further refine the scaffold design and apply a conductivity gradient to the scaffold. “We’re going to make it so that the conductivity increases towards the distal tip, which further stimulates neuronal regeneration,” she added.