A team of researchers from Tel Aviv University's Sagol Center for Regenerative Biotechnology has successfully engineered 3D human spinal cord tissues and implanted them in a lab mouse with long-term chronic paralysis, marking the first time this has been done.
The best part, however, is that the results were extremely encouraging as they've seen a roughly 80 percent success rate in restoring walking abilities, according toThe technology used to achieve this feat is based on obtaining a small biopsy of belly fat tissue from the patient, which consists of cells together with an extracellular matrix.
After that, the mice were implanted with human spinal cord implants. The lab models were divided into two groups, those who had been paralyzed for a short time and those who had been paralyzed for a long time . After the implantation, all of the lab models with acute paralysis and 80 percent of those with chronic paralysis were able to walk again.
"This is the first instance in the world in which implanted engineered human tissues have generated recovery in an animal model for long-term chronic paralysis – which is the most relevant model for paralysis treatments in humans," said Prof. Dvir.This could be a game-changer for millions of people across the world who are paralyzed due to spinal damage and have yet to find an appropriate treatment.
The researchers are now preparing for the next step of the study, which will include clinical trials on human patients. They hope to implant the modified tissues in paralyzed people within a few years, allowing them