MIT investigates neuronal regeneration

• April 20, 2024

A new discovery about mechanisms of molecular and chemical compounds shows that it can improve the neuronal regeneration , and through this, develop new therapies and combat injuries of the nervous system, as well as neurodegenerative diseases, publishes the National Academy of Sciences of the United States.

Researchers from the University of Massachusetts (Massachusetts Institute of Technology), Known by its acronym in English as MIT, they study the ability to regenerate nerve cells or neurons, which could offer a new way to treat spinal cord damage and diseases of neurons, such as Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) . Many chemical products are known that can regenerate cultured neurons of laboratory in boxes of Petri, nevertheless it is a slow and difficult process.

"Our technology helps researchers quickly identify promising chemicals that could be tested in mammals and perhaps in humans," says the professor. Mehmet Fatih Yanik and your team. MIT engineers now use microchip technology to test faster the potential of certain drugs in small worms called C. elegans, commonly used in studies of the nervous system, publishes the technology journal Nanowerck.

The worms C. elegans they are an excellent organism model to observe the regeneration of neurons due to their transparency and their neural network. Yanik and their colleagues developed a femtosecond laser technique that allowed them to cut and observe the regeneration of individual axons, which are responsible for sending information signals from neuron to neuron.

This type of technology allows to do thousands of microsurgeries in a single axon in a matter of seconds, says the study. It is now possible to identify certain chemicals that can alter neuronal regeneration. Microchip technology can also be used to find compounds that have effects on diseases such as Alzheimer's, Parkinson's and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, indicates Yanik .

For more information about the study visit the page: //www.pnas.org/content/early/2010/10/07/1005372107