Nerve damage is incredibly difficult to fix. In fact, nerve injuries usually have consequences that accompany patients for life. Scientists are looking for ways to improve their abilities to repair nerve damage and help people recover.
Now researchers at UCL used the nematode worm C. elegans in their research and identified a molecule essential for regulating the “glue” used in repairing damaged nerves.
Damaged nerves do not heal very well, but they can sort of glue themselves back together. Image credit: Kuartas via Wikimedia
The C. elegans worm is known for its ability to self-repair nerve cells. Humans do not possess such an ability, which is why scientists are looking for ways to borrow it from the nematode worm. Researchers have revealed that animals that do not have ADM-4 enzyme cannot repair their nerves by fusion. This means that ADM-4 may hold the key to successful nerve damage repair.
Scientists believe that ADM-4 enzyme stabilises the fusogen EFF-1 in the injured neuron and helps membranes of separated nerves to merge.
The nematode worm C. elegans has the ADM-4 enzyme and is therefore known for its ability to repair its damaged nerves. Researchers were looking for ways to apply the same biological process to other animals. The good news for us is that ADM-4 is similar to a mammalian gene, which means that one day nerve-healing abilities may be harnessed for our advantage.
Nerve cells connect themselves in huge networks that pass information needed for the proper functioning of our bodies. They employ cable-like structures called axons to build these networks. The trouble arises when axons are severed. Not for C. elegans worms, however, because a few years ago scientists discovered that these creatures are able to re-join two separated axon fragments. Now scientists identified ADM-4 enzyme as a key component in this process and there is hope that axonal fusion can be recreated in humans.
Associate Professor Victor Anggono, one of the authors of the study, said: “Using neurosurgery to stitch together damaged nerves has limited success. A different approach using gene technology to directly provide the molecular glue, or activate the fusogen regulator ADM-4, or using pharmacology to activate these components, may facilitate complete regeneration.”
Scientists say that their ultimate goal is to harness axonal fusion from animals and induce the same mechanical process in people who have had a nerve injury. However, even though the discovery of ADM-4’s role is an important step forward, scientists admit that therapies based on this knowledge are still many years away.
Source: UCL