April 20, 2024

Scientists Identify Neurons Needed to Walk After Paralysis

Scientists now have a better understanding of how our bodies respond to spinal cord injuries and the specific cells that might direct recovery. In 2018, researchers initially acknowledged that stimulating nerves near the website of injury– a process understood as epidural electrical stimulation (EES)– could alleviate a persons pain following a spinal cable injury and restore their ability to stroll when integrated with extensive physical therapy. In mice without a spinal cable injury, silencing the cells did nothing, suggesting that such cells just become necessary to movement following an injury, Science reports.Speaking to New Scientist, Marc Ruitenberg, a neurologist at the University of Queensland who studies back cord injury and was not involved in the study, states that the hope these findings offer to those with spine injuries “is unbelievable.

Scientists now have a much better understanding of how our bodies respond to spinal cord injuries and the specific cells that may direct recovery. In 2018, scientists first acknowledged that stimulating nerves near the site of injury– a process understood as epidural electrical stimulation (EES)– might alleviate a persons discomfort following a spinal cable injury and restore their capability to stroll when integrated with intensive physical treatment. The scientists decided to probe this concept in mice, causing spinal cord injuries in the animals and imitating the recovery process to attempt and recapitulate their findings. In mice without a spinal cord injury, silencing the cells did nothing, recommending that such cells just become essential to movement following an injury, Science reports.Speaking to New Scientist, Marc Ruitenberg, a neurologist at the University of Queensland who studies back cable injury and was not included in the research study, states that the hope these findings provide to those with spinal injuries “is extraordinary.