Growth Factor Regenerates Nerve Fibers
Via AScribe, news of a promising discovery: scientists "have discovered a naturally occurring growth factor [called oncomodulin] that stimulates regeneration of injured nerve fibers (axons) in the central nervous system. Under normal conditions, most axons in the mature central nervous system (which consists of the brain, spinal cord and eye) cannot regrow after injury. ... Out of the blue, we found a molecule that causes more nerve regeneration than anything else ever studied. We expect this to spur further research into what else oncomodulin is doing in the nervous system and elsewhere ... there is another side to the nerve-regeneration problem: overcoming agents that act as natural inhibitors of axon growth. ... Now that Benowitz has isolated oncomodulin, he believes even greater regeneration is possible by combining it with agents that counteract growth inhibitors."
Link: http://newswire.ascribe.org/cgi-bin/behold.pl?ascribeid=20060510.061706