Investigating the regenerative potential of a silk hydrogel in an ex vivo model of spinal cord injury

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. Silk is a promising biomaterial that can promote mammalian nerve cells to regenerate in the PNS, but its potential for spinal cord repair has not yet been tested. Here, we hypothesise that silk based hydrogel will enhance the outgrowth of neurites in an ex vivo model of spinal cord injury which mimics a spinal cord environment after injury in vivo.