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"For the first time in the world, researchers from Sagol Center for Regenerative Biotechnology at Tel Aviv University have engineered 3D human spinal cord tissues and implanted them in lab model with long-term chronic paralysis. The results were highly encouraging: an approximately 80% success rate in restoring walking abilities. Now the researchers are preparing for the next stage of the study: clinical trials in human patients. They hope that within a few years the engineered tissues will be implanted in paralyzed individuals enabling them to stand up and walk again. ...
"Our technology is based on taking a small biopsy of belly fat tissue from the patient. This tissue, like all tissues in our body, consists of cells together with an extracellular matrix (comprising substances like collagens and sugars). After separating the cells from the extracellular matrix we used genetic engineering to reprogram the cells, reverting them to a state that resembles embryonic stem cells – namely cells capable of becoming any type of cell in the body. From the extracellular matrix we produced a personalized hydrogel, that would evoke no immune response or rejection after implantation. We then encapsulated the stem cells in the hydrogel and in a process that mimics the embryonic development of the spinal cord we turned the cells into 3D implants of neuronal networks containing motor neurons."
The human spinal cord implants were then implanted in lab models, divided into two groups: those who had only recently been paralyzed (the acute model) and those who had been paralyzed for a long time – equivalent to a year in human terms (the chronic model). Following the implantation, 100% of the lab models with acute paralysis and 80% of those with chronic paralysis regained their ability to walk. ..."From the abstract:
"Cell therapy using induced pluripotent stem cell-derived neurons is considered a promising approach to regenerate the injured spinal cord (SC). However, the scar formed at the chronic phase is not a permissive microenvironment for cell or biomaterial engraftment or for tissue assembly. Engineering of a functional human neuronal network is now reported by mimicking the embryonic development of the SC in a 3D dynamic biomaterial-based microenvironment. Throughout the in vitro cultivation stage, the system's components have a synergistic effect, providing appropriate cues for SC neurogenesis. While the initial biomaterial supported efficient cell differentiation in 3D, the cells remodeled it to provide an inductive microenvironment for the assembly of functional SC implants. The engineered tissues are characterized for morphology and function, and their therapeutic potential is investigated, revealing improved structural and functional outcomes after acute and chronic SC injuries. Such technology is envisioned to be translated to the clinic to rewire human injured SC."
Regenerating the Injured Spinal Cord at the Chronic Phase by Engineered iPSCs-Derived 3D Neuronal Networks (open access)
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