Say good-bye to spinal scars, thanks to newly found blood cells

From ANI

Melbourne, July 11: Scientists have identified a group of blood vessel cells that might be helpful to repair scars on the spinal cord.

The team of scientists at the Karolinska Institute in Sweden and Centro Nacional de Investigaciones Oncologicas in Spain are behind the discovery, which is expected to enhance our understanding on how scars are formed in nervous tissue.

It may shed light on scar formation throughout the body and diseases like fibrosis as well.

"Scientists have been studying scar formation for over a century", ABC Science quoted Dr Christian Goritz, who led the research, as saying.

"A skin scar doesn't interfere with function, but in the brain and spinal cord a scar is a big problem: it can permanently interrupt nerve function," he said.

Under the microscope, a scar in the spinal cord shows two cell types. There is a core of connective tissue cells called fibroblasts. Outside the core is a layer of cells, called astrocytes.

The source of the fibroblast cells was earlier unknown, but now Goritz's team has revealed that they arise from cells called pericytes, wrapped round tiny blood vessels.

The researchers injured the spinal cords of mice and discovered that these Pericytes tissues actually came into rescue of the damaged cords.

"[The pericytes] leave their normal position and move out into the damaged tissue," says Goritz.

"They only do this in the lesioned tissue. In the normal tissue they still stick to the blood vessels," he added.

"As soon as they reach the damaged tissue they become fibroblasts and they cluster together over time to seal the lesion from the core," he explained.

The study showed that the cells also proliferate, rapidly producing more pericytes. Nine days after the injury, the number of pericytes in the injured area was 25 times normal.

The study was published in the Science journal.


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