Can paralyzed people with spinal cord injury be cured soon?

Is it possible to cure a paralysis caused by a spinal cord injury??

It could be good news for people with spinal cord injury. Researchers have now managed to cure paralyzed rats with the help of gene therapy. The animals, unable to move their limbs properly, regained their ability to grab food and feed themselves.

The scientists at King's College London found in their current research that gene therapy can cure paralyzed rats that would normally be unable to move properly. The physicians published the results of their study in the English-language journal "Brain".

In the future, new gene therapy could result in paralyzed people with spinal cord injury being able to move their limbs. (Image: VRD / fotolia.com)

Rats regained limb control through treatment

Researchers tested gene therapy in spinal cord injury rats to simulate the typical injuries people experience in car accidents or falls. It has been observed that gene therapy rates quickly regain basic control over their limbs, says study author Professor Elizabeth Bradbury of King's College London. However, more precise movements took a little longer.

After a few weeks, an improvement was noted

In some of the tests, such as grasping the rungs of a ladder, the treatment worked within one to two weeks. Other tests, such as taking objects, required a very good muscle function, the expert continued. Such an activity required reaching the object by hand, grasping it, turning the wrist and lifting and moving the object. To relearn such an accomplishment will take a longer time. An improvement could be observed here after five to six weeks, explains the doctor.

Special enzyme breaks down the scar tissue

The scientists injected into the damaged spinal cord a gene that forms an enzyme called chondroitinase, the researchers say. The enzyme breaks down the scar tissue, which seals the ends of damaged nerve fibers. This allows the nerves to grow, reconnect the spinal cord and restore muscle movement, the researchers explain in a press release.

Further research is needed

The results of the study showed that this type of treatment works in rats with recent injuries. The experts now repeat the experiment on animals with injuries up to one month old and more scar tissue. Further investigation is now needed to ensure that the treatment has no undesirable side effects. The scientists have installed a kind of switch for protection, so that the enzyme is only active when the rats consume an antibiotic in their drinking water. If the antibiotic is removed from the drinking water, the gene switches off.

Treatment could significantly improve the quality of life

There are now investigations on dogs that were injured in accidents. If this research is successful, it will eventually be followed by human studies, explain the authors. If paralyzed people could move their hands again through such treatment, this would partially restore their independence. Those affected could cook for themselves again and eat alone, which of course is completely normal for most people, but would mean an enormously increased quality of life for people with paralysis. (As)