New Hope for Nerve Damage Patients

For long periode of health science development, discovering that there is hope to help patients with permanent nerve damage to recover was a new step in neurosurgery unit. He was Profesor John Prietsley, a neurologyst expert and researcher from Queen Mary Faculty of Medicine and Dental in London, have proven that cells in nervous system could grow at specific fiber which are having similar characteristic with silk fiber produced by spider.

Artificial fiber named Spidex formed from spinned silk have been modified to help neurons tied and connected one another and it was said that the fiber has characteristic of layer where nuerons grow.

Researchers studied the respond of Spidex in both a media consist of nerve tissue and in an animal as an objeck of experiment. A satisfactory finding resulted from both experiments. New tissues produced soround the spidex was showing red color, as a neuron and blue color as Scahwann cells, an important tissue for neurons to regenarate.

"And in animal, we have succesfully done in spinal cord and synapses" said Priestly. He also reported that Spidex could be create as a kind of complex tube designed as a media for neurons to grow.

For this new discovery, the tim have awarded "Wellcome Trust Biomedical Image Awards 2006". The success was a part of best 26 biomedical innovation which their experimental process could be observed and supervised directly.

Researcher put a big hope in Spidex to help patients with damages in synapses regulating muscles contraction and transmitting stimulus from peripheral receptors. Another spectacular finding expected in the near future is how Spidex become a more complex media for neurons at spinal cord to regenerate.

Source : Kompas, BBC,