Advances and Future Applications of Augmented Peripheral Nerve Regeneration.
Peripheral nerve injuries remain a significant source of long lasting morbidity, disability, and economic costs. Much research continues to be performed in areas related to improving the surgical outcomes of peripheral nerve repair. In this review, the physiology of peripheral nerve regeneration and the multitude of efforts to improve surgical outcomes are discussed. Improvements in tissue engineering that have allowed for the use of synthetic conduits seeded with neurotrophic factors are highlighted. Selected pre-clinical and available clinical data using cell based methods such as Schwann cell, undifferentiated, and differentiated stem cell transplantation to guide and enhance peripheral nerve regeneration are presented. The limitations that still exist in the utility of neurotrophic factors and cell-based therapies are outlined. Strategies that are most promising for translation into the clinical arena are suggested.
Department of Neurosurgery, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD 21201, USA. sjones2@smail.umaryland.edu.
Salazar
S
Jones
Department of Neurosurgery, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD 21201, USA. heisenberg@smail.umaryland.edu.
Howard M
HM
Eisenberg
Department of Neurosurgery, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD 21201, USA. xjia@smail.umaryland.edu.|Department of Orthopaedics, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD 21201, USA. xjia@smail.umaryland.edu.|Department of Anatomy and Neurobiology, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD 21201, USA. xjia@smail.umaryland.edu.|Department of Biomedical Engineering, The Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD 21205, USA. xjia@smail.umaryland.edu.|Department of Anesthesiology and Critical Care Medicine, The Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD 21205, USA. xjia@smail.umaryland.edu.
Xiaofeng
X
Jia
D000818:Animals; D005544:Forecasting; D006801:Humans; D009416:Nerve Regeneration; D058953:Neural Stem Cells / Q000637:transplantation; D059348:Peripheral Nerve Injuries / Q000503:physiopathology* / Q000628:therapy*; D010525:Peripheral Nerves / Q000503:physiopathology*; D012583:Schwann Cells / Q000637:transplantation; D033581:Stem Cell Transplantation / Q000379:methods* / Q000639:trends; D023822:Tissue Engineering / Q000379:methods* / Q000639:trends
nerve conduits; neurotrophic factors; peripheral nerve; peripheral nerve regeneration; stem cells