One of the main challenges in tissue engineering and regenerative medicine is the ability tomaintain optimal cell function and survival post-transplantation and to protect the transplantedcells from immune responses and rejection in the host-tissue microenvironment. Biomaterialssuch as alginates can be utilised for immunoisolation, while they may also provide structuralsupport t...

Current research has strongly proposed that contrary to prior beliefs, many ovarian epithelial cancers (OECs) do not, as their name suggests, originate in the ovaries. Recent findings regarding both high-grade and low-grade serous carcinomas has implicated the fallopian tube as a cell source for these OECs, but until now, there has been little insight into the cellular source for clear cell and...

Olfactory ensheathing cells (OECs) migrate from the olfactory epithelium towards the olfactory bulb during development. However, the guidance mechanism for OEC migration remains a mystery. Here we show that migrating OECs expressed the receptor of the repulsive guidance factor Slit-2. A gradient of Slit-2 in front of cultured OECs first caused the collapse of the leading front, then the reversa...

Spinal cord injury (SCI) has very poor clinical prospects, resulting in irreversible loss of function below the injury site. Although applied in clinical trials, olfactory ensheathing cells transplantation (OEC) derived from lamina propria (OLP) is still a controversial repair strategy. The present study explored the efficacy of OLP or respiratory lamina propria (RLP) transplantation and the op...

Opportunistic bacterial infections of the nasal cavity could potentially lead to infection of the brain if the olfactory or trigeminal nerves are colonised. The olfactory nerve may be a more susceptible route because primary olfactory neurons are in direct contact with the external environment. Peripheral glia are known to be able to phagocytose some species of bacteria and may therefore provid...

Multiple Sclerosis (MS) causes loss of the myelin sheath, which leads to loss of neurons. Regeneration of myelin sheath stimulates axon regeneration and neurons' survival. In this study, olfactory ensheathing cell (OEC) transplantation is investigated to restore myelin sheath in an experimental model of MS in male mice.OECs were isolated from the olfactory mucosa of seven-day-old infant rats an...

multiple sclerosis (ms) causes loss of the myelin sheath, which leads to loss of neurons. regeneration of myelin sheath stimulates axon regeneration and neurons’ survival. in this study, olfactory ensheathing cell (oec) transplantation is investigated to restore myelin sheath in an experimental model of ms in male mice.oecs were isolated from the olfactory mucosa of seven-day-old infant rats an...

Spinal cord injury (SCI) can cause chronic paralysis and incontinence remains a major worldwide healthcare burden, with no regenerative treatment clinically available. Intraspinal transplantation of olfactory ensheathing cells (OECs) injection chondroitinase ABC (chABC) are both promising therapies but limited unpredictable responses seen, particularly in canine clinical trials. Sustained deliv...

Chitosan is a biomaterial with a range of current and potential biomedical applications. Manipulation of chitosan degree of deacetylation (DDA) to achieve specific properties appears feasible, but studies investigating its influence on properties are often contradictory. With a view to the potential of chitosan in the regeneration of nerve tissue, the influence of DDA on the growth and health o...

Endothelial progenitor cells are being broadly explored for the treatment of ischemic cardiovascular diseases, but their response to molecules commonly used to promote the growth of new blood vessels has not been fully characterized. In this study, angiogenic sprout formation in a 3-dimensional, in vitro model by one type of endothelial progenitor, outgrowth endothelial cells (OECs), was charac...