Repair of peripheral nerves with the use of PCL and carbon nanostructures.

• Grant number: 12/08251-0
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Master
• Start date: July 01, 2012
• End date: September 30, 2014
• Field of knowledge: Biological Sciences - Morphology - Cytology and Cell Biology
• Principal Investigator: Alexandre Leite Rodrigues de Oliveira
• Grantee: Kyl Assaf
• Host Institution: Instituto de Biologia (IB). Universidade Estadual de Campinas (UNICAMP). Campinas , SP, Brazil
• Associated scholarship(s): 13/07961-6 - Influence of carbon nanostructures on the viability, formation and elongation of dendrites in cortical neuron cultures, BE.EP.MS

Abstract

Traumatic injuries to peripheral nerves may result in a gap between the stumps, preventing end-to-end neurorrhaphy. In these cases, autologous grafts are widely used but have some disadvantages, such as availability of donor tissue, formation of painful neuromas in the donor area, among others. The tubulization technique, in which tubes are used to guide and protect the nerve during regeneration, offers advantages such as absence of further nerve damage (nerve autograft) and the possibility of manipulating the internal environment of the tube. Many aspects of the tube used for nerve regeneration must be considered, such as biocompatibility, biodegradability, degradation time, etc. The poly (µ-caprolactone) (PCL) is a material that has most of these properties. Carbon nanotubes and graphene also have characteristics that make them excellent components for neural implants and to compose polymer composites. Therefore, the purpose of this study is to use the tubulization technique for repair of peripheral nerves. For this, 48 Lewis rats will be used and divided into three groups (n = 16) according to the components used for making the tubular prostheses: PCL, PCL with carbon nanotubes (0.5%) and PCL with graphene (0.5%). Eight animals will be sacrificed 8 and 12 weeks postoperative. For evaluation of the implants used, the axons from nerves of normal animals and the regenerated axons inside the tubes will be quantified and examined morphometrically by means of light and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). Further, the functional recovery of animals will be analyzed using the Walking Track Test (Cat Walk).

Academic Publications

(References retrieved automatically from State of São Paulo Research Institutions)

ASSAF, Kyl. Repair of peripheral nerves with the use of PCL and carbon nanostructures. 2014. Master's Dissertation - Universidade Estadual de Campinas (UNICAMP). Instituto de Biologia Campinas, SP.