Combining a novel silk biomaterial and omega-3 docosahexaenoic acid for spinal cord repair

Following spinal cord injury, communication between the brain and the body below the injury level is
disrupted due to the damage to the cord. A hostile injury environment prevents the spinal cord nerve
cells to regenerate. To date, no single regenerative strategy has been translated to the clinic. Omega-3
DHA and novel silk biomterial are two promising strategies that promote mammalian nerve cells to
regenerate respectively. Here, we hypothesise that a combination of the two strategies, in the presence
of an inhibitory encironment, will lead to better regeneration of rat nerve cells in vitro. The project will
inform future work with in vivo SCI model.