Spinal cord injury research focuses on sea shellsRSS Feed

A team of scientists who are researching spinal cord injuries are focusing their efforts on an unlikely item in their quest for a new treatment: sea shells.

The researchers believe that sugar contained in the shells of sea creatures could help in patching up damage to an injured spinal cord, writes Rebecca Smith in the Daily Telegraph.

Results from the early stages of the research - which was carried out at the Centre for Paralysis Research at the Purdue School of Veterinary Medicine in Indiana - have been published in The Journal of Experimental Biology.

Although the team has only conducted its experiments on guinea pigs, it is hopeful that its work could lead to treatments for humans, Ms Smith reports.

"By measuring the brain's response to nerve signals generated in the guinea pig's hind leg, the team found that just 30 minutes after the sugar injection, the electrical signals were restored," Ms Smith adds.

Meanwhile, Debbie Haws has stated in an article for SouthBendTribune.com that people who have several months of inactivity may be at greater risk of experiencing spinal cord injuries.

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