Spinal Cord Injury and Regeneration in Zebrafish (VIDEO)

Duke University

Caption

Zebrafish serve as a model to inform new strategies for spinal cord regeneration in humans. This cartoon movie shows the multi-step process of healing after injury. Supporting glial cells (shown in red) are first to cross the gap between the severed ends. Neuronal cells (green) soon follow. Researchers discovered that a protein called connective tissue growth factor, or CTGF, which is expressed in glia, is crucial for this process.

Credit

Mayssa Mokalled and Kenneth Poss, Duke University

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