The article, by Gina Kolata of the New York Times News Service , reports on a study which was published on the same day in The Proceedings of the National Academy of Science . But now, in experiments that experts call amazing, that dogma has been overturned. That raises a glimmer of a possibility of eventually treating degenerative diseases such as Alzheimer's or Parkinson's disease and injuries, such as those resulting from stroke or trauma, by prompting the brain to grow replacement cells, researchers said. With this method, the researchers looked for, and found, new cells in the animals' hippocampuses. The study was by Dr. Elizabeth Gould of Princeton University and Dr. Bruce S. McEwen of Rockefeller University, and their colleagues.
New treatment causes nerve fibers to grow in brain-injured rats.
Brain-damaged rats that were given injections of an experimental treatment grew new nerve fibers that once again let them climb ropes, grasp food pellets and remove sticky tape from their front paws, scientists reported Monday. Experts said the research could help lead to new approaches to spinal cord and brain injuries in humans. The ability of the antibody to promote new compensatory growth, rather than just repair damaged nerve fibers, could be useful in treating stroke, the researchers said. Researchers on Wednesday announced the first strong evidence that neurons, the brain's thinking cells, can renew themselves. The article discusses the work of Fred Gage, a neurobiologist at the Salk Institute in the San Diego community of La Jolla, and mentions related work by several other researchers.