After spinal cord injury, axon outgrowth inhibitors present in myelin and in the neural scar are considered to contribute to the failure of injured axons to re-establish functional connections. Class-3 semaphorins are expressed by the meningeal cells that infiltrate the glial scar after injury and signal by binding to neuropilin-1 (Npn-1) or neuropilin-2 (Npn-2). Since neurons of the red nucleu...

The precise contribution of different CS-GAGs to CSPG-mediated inhibition of axonal growth after CNS injury is unknown. Quantification of the CS-GAGs in uninjured and injured brain (scar tissue) using fluorophore-assisted carbohydrate electrophoresis (FACE) demonstrated that the dominant CS-GAG in the uninjured brain is CS-4 whereas, in glial scar, CS-2, CS-6, and CS-4,6 were over-expressed. To...

It was traditionally thought that the central nerve system (CNS) defects the regenerated ability, following the injury. However, the peripheral nerve system (PNS) possesses an ability of regeneration after injury. Also it was found that the axon in CNS might extend into the graft, as soon as the peripheral nerve tissue was transplanted into the injured part of CNS. Therefore, it implied that th...

Traumatic brain injury (TBI) results in a loss of brain tissue at the moment of impact in the cerebral cortex. Subsequent secondary injury involves the release of molecular signals with dramatic consequences for the integrity of damaged tissue, leading to the evolution of a pericontusional-damaged area minutes to days after in the initial injury. The mechanisms behind the progression of tissue ...

The extracellular matrix (ECM) molecules chondroitin-6-sulfate proteoglycan (CS-PG) and cytotactin/tenascin (CT), present on subpopulations of astroglia or their precursors during development, can inhibit neurite outgrowth in vitro. However, it is not known whether these molecules are expressed within the mature CNS following injury, where they could contribute to regenerative failure. Thus, th...

Astrogliosis (i.e. glial scar), which is comprised primarily of proliferated astrocytes at the lesion site and migrated astrocytes from neighboring regions, is one of the key reactions in determining outcomes after CNS injury. In an effort to identify potential molecules/pathways that regulate astrogliosis, we sought to determine whether Rac/Rac-mediated signaling in astrocytes represents a nov...

The present study examined whether nestin+ neural-like stem cells detected in the scar tissue of rats 1 week after myocardial infarction (MI) were derived from bone marrow and/or were resident cells of the normal myocardium. Irradiated male Wistar rats transplanted with beta-actin promoter-driven, green fluorescent protein (GFP)-labeled, unfractionated bone marrow cells were subjected to corona...

STUDY DESIGN Self-assembling peptide gel (SPG-178) provides new evidence for the role of a scaffold for treatment of the spinal cord through induction of neuroprotective factors. OBJECTIVE To verify the reproducibility of SPG-178 as scaffold after spinal cord injury, we examine the characteristics of SPG-178 and protective effect on neural cells in vitro and in vivo. SUMMARY OF BACKGROUND D...