The adult CNS is an inhibitory environment for axon outgrowth, severely limiting recovery from traumatic injury. This limitation is due, in part, to endogenous axon regeneration inhibitors (ARIs) that accumulate at CNS injury sites. ARIs include myelin-associated glycoprotein, Nogo, oligodendrocyte-myelin glycoprotein, and chondroitin sulfate proteoglycans (CSPGs). Some ARIs bind to specific re...

BACKGROUND Based on growing evidence that some adult multipotent cells necessary for tissue regeneration reside in the walls of blood vessels and the clinical success of vein wrapping for functional repair of nerve damage, we hypothesized that the repair of nerves via vein wrapping is mediated by cells migrating from the implanted venous grafts into the nerve bundle. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FIN...

The interposition sural nerve graft has been attempted occasionally during radical prostatectomy for the recovery of continence and erectile function; however, nerve autograft may result in adverse events for the patient. Here, we present our initial experiences using NerbridgeTM, a novel conduit for peripheral nerve regeneration, rather than utilizing sural nerve grafting, in robot-assisted la...

There are numerous factors that affect the success of peripheral nerve grafting. Among these are (1) the type of injury to the nerve; (2) the degree of damage to the sur rounding tissue and its complications; (3) the general condition of the patient; (4) the age of the patient; (5) the size, level and location of the nerve defect; (6) the local nutrition and the amount of scar in and around the...

OBJECTIVE Loss of even part of the upper limb is a devastating injury. In order to fully restore natural function when lacking sufficient residual musculature, it is necessary to record directly from peripheral nerves. However, current approaches must make trade-offs between signal quality and longevity which limit their clinical potential. To address this issue, we have developed the regenerat...

Concepts of neuronal damage and repair date back to ancient times. The research in this topic has been growing ever since and numerous nerve repair techniques have evolved throughout the years. Due to our greater understanding of nerve injuries and repair we now distinguish between central and peripheral nervous system. In this review, we have chosen to concentrate on peripheral nerve injuries ...

Injuries to the peripheral nervous system are major sources of disability and often result in painful neuropathies or the impairment of muscle movement and/or normal sensations. For gaps smaller than 10 mm in rodents, nearly normal functional recovery can be achieved; for longer gaps, however, there are challenges that have remained insurmountable. The current clinical gold standard used to bri...