A carbon nanotube sponge is biocompatible with cerebral cortex tissue and, furthermore, capable of connecting two spinal segments, according to the findings of research conducted by groups led by Professor Maurizio Prato in CIC biomaGUNE and in the University of Trieste, Professor Laura Ballerini and Professor Maurizio De Crescenzi.
The work, published in the prestigious scientific journal Science Advances, is a further step towards connecting lesioned spinal cord segments. "The research uses a new type of 3D material made from carbon nanotubes with the appearance of a black sponge. The most important property of this material is that the carbon nanotubes act as miniscule electrical wires to conduct electricity, so our group has spent many years looking into its interactions with nervous tissues", explains Maurizio Prato, Ikerbasque Professor and leader of the Carbon Nanobiotechnology Group in CIC biomaGUNE.
Research shows how the sponge is biocompatible with cerebral cortex tissue, enabling nerve fibres to grow correctly on its surface with minimal scar formation as a reaction to the implant. The work of the teams led by Maurizio Prato in CIC biomaGUNE and the University of Trieste, Laura Ballerini in the Scuola Internazionale Superiore di Studi Avanzati (International School for Advanced Studies) in Trieste and Maurizio De Crecenzi in the Universidad of Rome Tor Vergata, shows that carbon nanotube sponges are capable of connecting two spinal cord segments, thereby opening up a new path in the field of research focused on spinal cord repair.
Under the title "3D meshes of carbon nanotubes guide functional reconnection of segregated spinal explants", the article is the result of the ten years spent by Professor Maurizio Prato researching into the compatibility of carbon nanotubes with nervous tissue.
Preliminary studies
“This basic research is at a very preliminary stage and still r equires a lot more in-depth study and considerable time befo re it can potentially be applie d in clinical practice. We do not want to raise false expectations: the research being con ducted and the progress being made is significant but w ill require a long maturation pe riod”, stresses Prof. Maurizio Prato.
For the team that has conducte d this research, progress along t his long path has involved numerous in vitro experiments with cells. As Prof. Prato explai ns: “We began by depositing cells on a bed of carbon nanotubes to observe their behaviour. What we’ve seen is that when neuronal cells are deposited on this material , communication across the cells increases. The carbon na notubes provide a very effici ent connection milieu for the neurons, and spontaneous electrical activity is much greate r than in the absence of nanotubes”.
“Initial experiments revealed that the carbon nanotubes integra te very well with the neurons. We later graduated from simple cells to more complex s ystems such as spinal cord sections to observe the behaviour of more complex tissue w ith carbon nanotubes. The last step has been to position the sponge as a scaffold bet ween two segments of spinal cord, and we are now experimenting with sponges implante d in the lesioned spinal cord of mice”, the CIC biomaGUNE researcher added.
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