ECU researchers may have found nerve treatment
Posted: Thu Apr 19, 2007 6:36 am
The puzzle becomes clearer everyday...
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http://www.reflector.com/local/content/ ... =7&cxcat=9
ECU researchers may have found nerve treatment
By Jimmy Ryals
The Daily Reflector
Thursday, April 19, 2007
East Carolina University researchers may have uncovered a path to simpler treatment for damaged nerves.
In a study published last month, a research team led by an ECU associate professor found links between a molecular process and regrowth of nerves that carry impulses from the brain and spinal cord to the body.
With further study, the group's conclusions could ultimately yield treatments that speed regrowth of damaged nerves, said Dr. Alexander Murashov, the ECU associate professor of physiology who led the research team.
Experimenting on lab mice, Murashov's team found that RNA interference, a process that governs protein manufacturing in the body and spurs nerve regrowth, may work in nerve axons, the fibers that carry impulses away from the nerve cell to the body's tissues.
Traditionally, researchers have believed nerve regeneration can only begin in cell bodies at the center of a nerve, Murashov said. Those protein generation impulses had to travel the length of axons — sometimes up to three feet — to reach the damaged areas, leading to slow healing.
For instance, regrowth in the three-foot-long sciatic nerve, which runs from the hip along the thigh, occurs at a rate of 2 to 3 millimeters per day, Murashov said. At that pace, recovery can take more than a year, he added.
Subsequent study showed regrowth occurring in the axons; Murashov's team built on that research, finding the connection between RNA interference and regrowth in the axons.
"If you have a factory cell, somebody needs to regulate production in this factory," Murashov said. "So, we were curious (about) what mechanism or process can regulate local expression of the proteins."
The next step for Murashov and his team is to get a deeper understanding of how RNA interference interacts with localized nerve regeneration. Specifically, they'll investigate which micro-RNAs — the molecules that control protein creation — have certain effects on nerve healing. Finding those molecules could show researchers how to manipulate nerve regrowth in axons, Murashov said.
Murashov's research team included four ECU other faculty members, one ECU graduate student, a student at Wake Forest University and a former ECU professor now working at Kazan Medical University in Russia. The group's work appeared in the March edition of the journal of the Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology.
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http://www.reflector.com/local/content/ ... =7&cxcat=9
ECU researchers may have found nerve treatment
By Jimmy Ryals
The Daily Reflector
Thursday, April 19, 2007
East Carolina University researchers may have uncovered a path to simpler treatment for damaged nerves.
In a study published last month, a research team led by an ECU associate professor found links between a molecular process and regrowth of nerves that carry impulses from the brain and spinal cord to the body.
With further study, the group's conclusions could ultimately yield treatments that speed regrowth of damaged nerves, said Dr. Alexander Murashov, the ECU associate professor of physiology who led the research team.
Experimenting on lab mice, Murashov's team found that RNA interference, a process that governs protein manufacturing in the body and spurs nerve regrowth, may work in nerve axons, the fibers that carry impulses away from the nerve cell to the body's tissues.
Traditionally, researchers have believed nerve regeneration can only begin in cell bodies at the center of a nerve, Murashov said. Those protein generation impulses had to travel the length of axons — sometimes up to three feet — to reach the damaged areas, leading to slow healing.
For instance, regrowth in the three-foot-long sciatic nerve, which runs from the hip along the thigh, occurs at a rate of 2 to 3 millimeters per day, Murashov said. At that pace, recovery can take more than a year, he added.
Subsequent study showed regrowth occurring in the axons; Murashov's team built on that research, finding the connection between RNA interference and regrowth in the axons.
"If you have a factory cell, somebody needs to regulate production in this factory," Murashov said. "So, we were curious (about) what mechanism or process can regulate local expression of the proteins."
The next step for Murashov and his team is to get a deeper understanding of how RNA interference interacts with localized nerve regeneration. Specifically, they'll investigate which micro-RNAs — the molecules that control protein creation — have certain effects on nerve healing. Finding those molecules could show researchers how to manipulate nerve regrowth in axons, Murashov said.
Murashov's research team included four ECU other faculty members, one ECU graduate student, a student at Wake Forest University and a former ECU professor now working at Kazan Medical University in Russia. The group's work appeared in the March edition of the journal of the Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology.