Astrocytes of the primate and human optic nerve head are joined to each other by the gap junction type of intercellular membrane specialization. Although the precise function of these contacts is not fully determined, they may serve such diverse roles as adhesive bonding and intercellular electrical and chemical coupling.

Proteins characteristic of growing axons often fail to be induced or transported along axons that have been interrupted far from their cell bodies in the adult mammalian CNS. Here, we inquire whether long axons in the mammalian CNS can support efficient axonal transport and deposition of one such protein, GAP-43, when the protein is induced in neuron cell bodies. We have used immunocytochemistr...

OBJECTIVE This study compared nerve regeneration in Wistar rats, using epineural neurorrhaphy with a gap of 1.0 mm and without a gap, both wrapped with jugular vein tubes. Motor neurons in the spinal cord between L3 and S1 were used for the count, marked by exposure of the tibial nerve to Fluoro-Gold (FG). METHOD The tibial nerves on both sides were cut and sutured, with a gap on one side and...

Anoxia and KC1 have been used to inactivate peripheral nerves by depolarization conduction block. Investigation of the inactivation patterns in isolated sciatic nerves of healthy and alloxan-diabetic rats suggests that the paranodal gap substance of healthy nerve behaves as an effective periaxonal diffusion barrier. In diabetic nerve the permeability of this barrier is significantly increased. ...

Multiple-bud regeneration, i.e., multiple amplification, has been shown to exist in peripheral nerve regeneration. Multiple buds grow towards the distal nerve stump during proximal nerve fiber regeneration. Our previous studies have verified the limit and validity of multiple amplification of peripheral nerve regeneration using small gap sleeve bridging of small donor nerves to repair large rec...

Damage to peripheral nerve tissue may cause loss of function in both the nerve and the targeted muscles it innervates. This study compared the repair capability of engineered nerve conduit (ENC), engineered fibroblast conduit (EFC), and autograft in a 10-mm tibial nerve gap. ENCs were fabricated utilizing primary fibroblasts and the nerve cells of rats on embryonic day 15 (E15). EFCs were fabri...

INTRODUCTION Often, when one experiences trauma or undergoes an invasive surgery, peripheral nerve damage results. Each year 360,000 people in the United States suffer from peripheral nerve injury [1]. Peripheral nerve injury can result in a loss of sensory and or motor function and will often lead to long-term disability in patients [2]. When a peripheral nerve is compressed or severed, the in...

A new combination of tissue engineering techniques provides a simple and effective method for building aligned cellular biomaterials. Self-alignment of Schwann cells within a tethered type-1 collagen matrix, followed by removal of interstitial fluid produces a stable tissue-like biomaterial that recreates the aligned cellular and extracellular matrix architecture associated with nerve grafts. S...