Progenitors in the Ependyma of the Spinal Cord: A Potential Resource for Self-Repair After Injury

Advances in Experimental Medicine and Biology
Nicolás MarichalRaúl E Russo

Abstract

Traumatic injury of the spinal cord leads to devastating conditions that affect ~2.5 million people worldwide. This is because the mammalian spinal cord reacts to injury with only limited endogenous repair. Functional restoration requires the replacement of lost cells, the growth and navigation of regenerating axons on a permissive scaffold and axon re-myelination. The manipulation of endogenous spinal stem cells is regarded as a potential strategy to restore function. For this type of therapy it is necessary to determine the molecular and functional mechanisms regulating the proliferation, migration and differentiation of adult spinal progenitors. The spinal cord of animal models in which self-repair normally occurs may provide some clues. Salamanders, some fish and turtles regenerate their spinal cord after massive injury, achieving substantial functional recovery. This regeneration is orchestrated by progenitors that line the central canal (CC). Although mammals have lost the ability for self-repair, some cells in the CC react to injury by proliferating and migrating toward the lesion, where most become astrocytes in the core of the scar. Thus, CC-contacting progenitors in mammals have "latent" programs for endogenous repair...Continue Reading

Citations

Aug 28, 2019·Tissue Engineering. Part B, Reviews·Nureddin AshammakhiStephanie K Seidlits
Jun 14, 2019·Stem Cells International·Sumei Liu, Zhiguo Chen
Feb 3, 2021·Neural Development·Gabriela Edwards-FaretJuan Larraín
Jul 22, 2021·Journal of Neuroscience Research·Omar Trujillo-CenózRaúl E Russo

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