U. Mayor researchers discover cellular mechanism that would be key to increase neuronal regeneration
07-10-2020
07-10-2020
The team at the Center for Integrative Biology, led by its director, Dr. Felipe Court, unveiled how glial cells transfer genetic material to neurons, enhancing their regenerative capacity. The research was on the cover of the latest issue of the prestigious Journal of Cell Science.
"The study on the regeneration of neurons is of clinical importance, since regeneration is associated with the recovery of sentimental and motor functions in patients who have suffered damage to their nervous system, such as the spinal cord or as a consequence of neurodegenerative diseases associated with aging ".
In this way, Dr. Felipe Court, director of the Center for Integrative Biology U. Mayor and Researcher at FONDAP Gero, explains the impact of the research that has just been published in the prestigious Journal of Cell Science, called "Schwann cell reprogramming into repair cells increases miRNA-21 expression in exosomes promoting axonal growth ", and in which researchers Rodrigo López-Leal, Romina Catalan, Cristian Saquel of the Center for Integrative Biology, Florencia Díaz-Viraqué and Gregorio Iraola of the Institute of Pasteur Montevideo, Uruguay and Anton Enright from the University of Cambridge, UK.
Dr. Court adds that "it is known that the regeneration capacity of neurons can be modified by other cells that make up the nervous system, called glial cells, although until now all the mechanisms involved in this modulation between cells are not known." Thus, in this work, the team discovered that one of these mechanisms is the release of nano-vesicles that contain genetic material, which is transferred to neurons and increases their regenerative capacity.
"Glial cells modify the neuron's genetic programs, such as endogenous gene therapy between cells," describes Dr. Court, who also explains that "based on these findings, we could use these vesicles to increase regenerative capacity as a therapeutic intervention, or the genetic content of these vesicles to generate targeted therapies".
"Knowing this is important, since it would allow new interventions for more efficient neuronal regeneration and faster functional recovery after damage to the nervous system," concludes Dr. Felipe Court, who together with his research team is authors from the microscopic image illustrating the cover of the latest issue of the Journal of Cell Science.
