To receive daily emails from Breaking Christian News to your inbox CLICK HERE
HEALTH: An 'EpiPen' for Spinal Cord Injuries Could Prevent Paralysis, Help MS"Hopefully, this technology could lead to new therapeutic strategies not only for patients with spinal cord injury but for those with various inflammatory diseases." -Jonghyuck Park (Ann Arbor, MI) — [Eurekalert.org] An injection of nanoparticles can prevent the body's immune system from overreacting to trauma, potentially preventing some spinal cord injuries from resulting in paralysis. (Image: Pixabay) The approach was demonstrated in mice at the University of Michigan, with the nanoparticles enhancing healing by reprogramming the aggressive immune cells—call it an "EpiPen" for trauma to the central nervous system, which includes the brain and spinal cord. "In this work, we demonstrate that instead of overcoming an immune response, we can co-opt the immune response to work for us to promote the therapeutic response," said Lonnie Shea, the Steven A. Goldstein Collegiate Professor of Biomedical Engineering. Trauma of any kind kicks the body's immune response into gear. In a normal injury, immune cells infiltrate the damaged area and clear debris to initiate the regenerative process. The central nervous system, however, is usually walled off from the rough-and-tumble of immune activity by the blood-brain barrier. A spinal cord injury breaks that barrier, letting in overzealous immune cells that create too much inflammation for the delicate neural tissues. That leads to the rapid death of neurons, damage to the insulating sheaths around nerve fibers that allow them to send signals, and the formation of a scar that blocks the regeneration of the spinal cord's nerve cells. All of this contributes to the loss of function below the level of the injury. That spectrum includes everything from paralysis to a loss of sensation for many of the 12,000 new spinal injury patients each year in the United States. Previous attempts to offset complications from this immune response included injecting steroids like methylprednisolone. That practice has largely been discarded since it comes with side effects that include sepsis, gastrointestinal bleeding and blood clots. The risks outweigh the benefits. But now, U-M researchers have designed nanoparticles that intercept immune cells on their way to the spinal cord, redirecting them away from the injury. Those that reach the spinal cord have been altered to be more pro-regenerative. With no drugs attached, the nanoparticles reprogram the immune cells with their physical characteristics: a size similar to cell debris and a negative charge that facilitates binding to immune cells. In theory, their nonpharmaceutical nature avoids unwanted side effects. With fewer immune cells at the trauma location, there is less inflammation and tissue deterioration. Second, immune cells that do make it to the injury are less inflammatory and more suited to supporting tissues that are trying to grow back together. "Hopefully, this technology could lead to new therapeutic strategies not only for patients with spinal cord injury but for those with various inflammatory diseases," said Jonghyuck Park, a U-M research fellow working with Shea. Previous research has shown success for nanoparticles mitigating trauma caused by the West Nile virus and multiple sclerosis, for example. "The immune system underlies autoimmune disease, cancer, trauma, regeneration—nearly every major disease," Shea said. "Tools that can target immune cells and reprogram them to a desired response have numerous opportunities for treating or managing disease." Subscribe for free to Breaking Christian News here
To receive daily emails from Breaking Christian News to your inbox CLICK HERE Other Recent Articles from Breaking Christian News Tens of Thousands Attend Jerusalem Annual Passover Priestly Blessing, Focus on Hostages, Families Pro-Life Democrat Runs 'Graphic' Abortion Ad during the 'Today' Show Outrage Follows Biden's Abortion Blessing at a Recent Rally Biden's EPA Rolls Out Regulations Aimed at Killing the American Coal Industry 8 GOP States (and Counting) Ban Biden's DOJ from 'Intimidating' Voters at 2024 Polls West Virginia Student Helps Pass Bill to Teach Intelligent Design: 'This Is a God-Fearing State' Free Speech Resolution Allows Satanic Temple 'Invocation' Sparking Chaos at a Michigan Board Meeting Paris Olympics Will Feature a 'Pride House' to 'Celebrate' Homosexual and Gender-Confused Athletes Video Captures Drag Queen Indoctrinating Kids, Getting Them to Chant... 'Free Palestine' Who's Funding the Anti-Israel, Pro-Palestine Protests? DEVELOPING: Harvey Weinstein Rape Conviction Overturned By New York Appellate Court Supreme Court Puts Final Nail in Coffin of Effort to Block Trump from Ballot in Arizona Courageous: Worship Leader Sean Feucht Prepares to Confront Anti-Israel Evil, Darkness, and Horror Search the Articles Archives |
All articles on this site and emails from BCN are copyrighted property of Breaking Christian News. Permission is given to link to, or share a BCN story if proper attribution is given to both the original writer and summarizer of the story. Breaking Christian News 2005-2019. All Rights Reserved.
Breaking Christian News is a division of Elijah List Publications, Inc. All Rights Reserved
Disclaimer: Articles and links, as well as the source articles linked to; do not necessarily reflect the opinion of Breaking Christian News.
Home | Store | Subscribe | Facebook | Article Archive |