Spinal cord injury results in a permanent neurological deficit due to tissue damage. Such a lesion is a barrier for "communication" between the brain and peripheral tissues, effectors as well as receptors. One of the primary goals of tissue engineering is to bridge the spinal cord injury and re-establish the damaged connections. Hydrogels are biocompatible implants used in spinal cord injury repair. They can create a permissive environment and bridge the lesion cavities by providing a scaffold for the regeneration of neurons and their axons, glia and other tissue elements. The advantage of using artificial materials is the possibility to modify their physical and chemical properties in order to develop the best implant suitable for spinal cord injury repair. As a result, several types of hydrogels have been tested in experimental studies so far. We review our work that has been done during the last 5 years with various types of hydrogels and their applications in experimental spinal cord injury repair.

Institute of Experimental Medicine Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic Prague Czech Republic

References provided by Crossref.org

Biomaterials and Magnetic Stem Cell Delivery in the Treatment of Spinal Cord Injury

Modified Methacrylate Hydrogels Improve Tissue Repair after Spinal Cord Injury

Dynamics of tissue ingrowth in SIKVAV-modified highly superporous PHEMA scaffolds with oriented pores after bridging a spinal cord transection

Macroporous hydrogels based on 2-hydroxyethyl methacrylate. Part 6: 3D hydrogels with positive and negative surface charges and polyelectrolyte complexes in spinal cord injury repair