Researchers have discovered that cleaned, sterilised silk from Asian wild silkworms had properties well suited to spinal repair, according to a study released on Thursday by the University of Oxford. Currently, there is no cure for serious spinal cord trauma, in part because spinal nerves are unable to cross the scar tissue barrier and the cavity that forms in the cord after the injury, Xinhua news agency reported.
In collaboration with Oxford Biomaterials Ltd, researchers from University of Aberdeen and the University of Oxford discovered that the modified silk from Antheraea pernyi (AP) silk spinner had important properties desirable in a scaffold which is capable of bridging the spinal injury cavity and supporting nerve growth across the damaged region. This is yet another example of the value of silks and their derivatives in modern medicine, with its emphasis on using natural…
