The ependymal region of the adult human spinal cord differs from other species and shows ependymoma-like features.

ABSTRACT: Several laboratories have described the existence of undifferentiated precursor cells that may act like stem cells in the ependyma of the rodent spinal cord. However, there are reports showing that this region is occluded and disassembled in humans after the second decade of life, although this has been largely ignored or interpreted as a post-mortem artefact. To gain insight into the patency, actual structure, and molecular properties of the adult human spinal cord ependymal region, we followed three approaches: (i) with MRI, we estimated the central canal patency in 59 control subjects, 99 patients with traumatic spinal cord injury, and 26 patients with non-traumatic spinal cord injuries. We observed that the central canal is absent from the vast majority of individuals beyond the age of

SUBMITTER: Garcia-Ovejero D 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4614133 | biostudies-literature | 2015 Jun

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature