Nine patients with spina bifida have been able to walk again after undergoing an innovative treatment conducted by scientists in Switzerland. The results of the work were published Wednesday (9) in the journal Nature.
The starting point was the study in mice of a family of neurons expressing the Vsx2 gene, which is not essential for walking in these animals, but whose knowledge was essential to the process of restoring motor function in humans.
From there, the group of scientists was able for the first time to visualize the activity of a patient’s spinal cord as it walked.
The researchers also created a type of 3D map of the spinal cord.
“Our model allows us to monitor the recovery process with much finer accuracy – at the neuronal level,” one of the study’s authors, Professor of Neuroscience Gregoire Courtine, of EPFL (Escola Politécnica Federal de Lausanne) explains in a statement.
As the study progressed, the importance of Vsx2 neurons, which are activated during the process of spinal cord stimulation, was realized.
In another step, the team led by Professor Stephanie LaCour, also of EPFL, developed in vitro epidural implants adapted to light-emitting diodes that allowed not only to stimulate the spinal cord, but also to disrupt Vsx2 neurons.
Identifying and reshaping the neurons that were activated in the spinal cord during lower limb movement was central to the success of the treatment, which made patients stand, walk and rebuild their muscles.
The study authors say that when the electrical stimulation of the spinal cord was stopped, their motor skills were preserved, indicating that the nerve fibers used in walking were reorganized.
According to them, the findings mark “essential clinical progress” in the rehabilitation of SCI patients who are currently unable to walk.
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