Transplantation of specific human astrocytes promotes functional recovery after spinal cord injury.

ABSTRACT: Repairing trauma to the central nervous system by replacement of glial support cells is an increasingly attractive therapeutic strategy. We have focused on the less-studied replacement of astrocytes, the major support cell in the central nervous system, by generating astrocytes from embryonic human glial precursor cells using two different astrocyte differentiation inducing factors. The resulting astrocytes differed in expression of multiple proteins thought to either promote or inhibit central nervous system homeostasis and regeneration. When transplanted into acute transection injuries of the adult rat spinal cord, astrocytes generated by exposing human glial precursor cells to bone morphogenetic protein promoted significant recovery of volitional foot placement, axonal growth and notabl

SUBMITTER: Davies SJ 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3047562 | biostudies-literature | 2011 Mar

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature