Tissue engineered nigrostriatal pathway for treatment of Parkinson's disease.

ABSTRACT: The classic motor deficits of Parkinson's disease are caused by degeneration of dopaminergic neurons in the substantia nigra pars compacta, resulting in the loss of their long-distance axonal projections that modulate the striatum. Current treatments only minimize the symptoms of this disconnection as there is no approach capable of replacing the nigrostriatal pathway. We are applying microtissue engineering techniques to create living, implantable constructs that mimic the architecture and function of the nigrostriatal pathway. These constructs consist of dopaminergic neurons with long axonal tracts encased within hydrogel microcolumns. Microcolumns were seeded with dopaminergic neuronal aggregates, while lumen extracellular matrix, growth factors, and end targets were varied to optimize

SUBMITTER: Struzyna LA 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6416379 | biostudies-literature | 2018 Jul

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature