1997 Fiscal Year Final Research Report Summary
Artificial nerve based on a massive production of Schwann cells.
| Project/Area Number |
08557044
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| Research Category |
Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research (B)
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| Allocation Type | Single-year Grants |
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| Section | 展開研究 |
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| Research Field |
Neurology
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| Research Institution | KYOTO UNIVERSITY |
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Principal Investigator |
OKA Nobuyuki Kyoto University Department of Neurology assistant professor, 医学研究科, 助手 (90252444)
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| Co-Investigator(Kenkyū-buntansha) |
NAKAMURA Tatsuo Kyoto University Research Center for Biomedical Engineering Associate Professor, 生体医療工学研究センター, 助教授 (70227908)
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| Project Period (FY) |
1996 – 1997
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| Keywords | nerve / regeneration / Schwann cell / apoptosis / ceramide |
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| Research Abstract |
Peripheral nerve regeneration has been demonstrated using a variety of synthetic nerve conducts. Most of these experiments were carried out in rats, using gaps between nerve stamps of less than 15mm. However, clinical cases often need longer nerve regeneration.
We hypothesize that the presence of Schwann cells as well as various growth factors promote nerve regeneration. Recent study suggests that Wallerian degeneration following the spinal cord injury cause the apoptosis of oligodendroglial cells.Therefore, we examine whether apoptotic changes occur on Schwann cells in various conditions and explore its inhibitor. The sphingomyelin pathway, in the cell membranes to generate the second messenger ceramides, is thought to mediate apoptosis. Exposure to C2-ceramide (N-acetyl-D-sphingosine) induced the morphological and biochemical features of apoptosis of cultured rat Schwann cells, confirmed by TUNEL staining. Apoptotic changes were detected after 6 hours.
In peripheral nerve disorders, we found the increased TNF-alpha on macrophages causing nerve degeneration in both axonal neuropathy and demyelinating neuropathy. Although there is still no evidence of apoptosis in vivo of Schwann cells, further study on the mechanism of programd cell death have a potential to treat effectively the peripheral nerve diseases.
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Research Products
(6 results)
