Researchers Develop Hydrogel That Promotes Brain Tissue Regrowth

Unlike some of our organs or parts of our body, our brain is pretty slow when it comes to healing itself. This is why our brains cannot recover from certain degenerative conditions as it can’t heal itself fast enough, at least not fast enough to keep up or outpace the disease.

However it seems that scientists at the University of California, Los Angeles might be onto something that could change that. They have developed an injectable hydrogel which can coax healthy tissue to patch up existing damage by helping to regenerate new brain tissue, nerve fibers, and even blood vessels.

The researchers approached the problem differently from other methods of treating strokes. Basically when a stroke occurs, brain cells are killed which are then absorbed into the body and leaves a cavity behind where no blood vessels or neurons will grow. This injectable hydrogel will help fill that cavity and act as a scaffold of sorts, allowing healthy brain tissue to patch up the area with new brain tissue. The gel also contains certain anti-inflammation medication and helps to stimulate the growth of new blood vessels.

So far the researchers have successfully tested it out on mice where after 16 weeks, new brain tissue was found to have grown in the cavities and it also saw an improvement in motor skills. Tests on humans have yet to be conducted but so far the researchers appear to be optimistic about their findings.

Tyler Lee
Categories: Medical
Tags: Health, Science