Story from BBC NEWSScientists believe they are close to a significant breakthrough in the treatment of spinal injuries.
The University of Cambridge team is developing a treatment which could
potentially allow damaged nerve fibres to regenerate within the spinal
cord.
It may also encourage the remaining undamaged nerve fibres to work more effectively.
Spinal injuries are difficult to treat because the body cannot repair damage to the brain or spinal cord.
|
We are very hopeful that at last we may be able to offer paralysed patients a treatment to improve their condition
Professor James Fawcett
University of Cambridge
|
Although it is possible for nerves to regenerate, they are blocked by
the scar tissue that forms at the site of the spinal injury.
The Cambridge team has identified a bacteria enzyme
called chondroitinase which is capable of digesting molecules within
scar tissue to allow some nerve fibres to regrow.
The enzyme also promotes nerve Plasticity, which
potentially means that remaining undamaged nerve fibres have an
increased likelihood of making new connections that could bypass the
area of damage.
Boosts Rehabilitation
In preliminary tests, the researchers have shown that combining
chondroitinase with rehabilitation produces better results than using
either technique alone.
|
What often happens in a clinical setting is that you don't get to see the results you would have liked
Paul Smith
Spinal Injuries Association
|
However, trials have yet to begin in patients.
Lead researcher Professor James Fawcett said: "It is rare to find that
a spinal cord is completely severed, generally there are still some
nerve fibres that are undamaged.
"Chondroitinase offers us hope in two ways; firstly it
allows some nerve fibres to regenerate and secondly it enables other
nerves to take on the role of those fibres that cannot be repaired.
"Along with rehabilitation we are very hopeful that at
last we may be able to offer paralysed patients a treatment to improve
their condition."
'Ground-breaking'
Dr Yolande Harley, of the charity Action Medical Research which funded
the work, said: "This is incredibly exciting, ground-breaking work,
which will give new hope to people with recent spinal injuries."
Paul Smith, of the Spinal Injuries Association, said
medical advances meant that spinal injuries had ceased to be the
terminal conditions that they often once were, but they still had a
huge impact on quality of life.
However, he warned against raising expectation before the treatment was fully tested on patients.
He said: "What often happens in a clinical setting is that you don't get to see the results you would have liked."
In the UK there are more than 40,000 people suffering from injuries to
their spine, which can take the form of anything from loss of sensation
to full paralysis.
The average age at the time of injury is just 19.
