For millions of people who have lost the ability to walk after a spinal cord injury, the prospect of standing and taking a step again has remained more of a dream than medical reality.
That may, however, change soon.
Scientists at Tel Aviv University in Israel are moving towards a first-in-human test of an engineered spinal cord implant designed to repair damaged spinal tissue and potentially restore movement to people living with paralysis.
The research, led by Professor Tal Dvir, has spent more than a decade exploring whether a patient’s own cells can be transformed into new tissue capable of replacing damaged parts of the nervous system.
In an interview highlighted in a video shared by the Chief Executive Officer of Nas Company, Nuseir Yassin, Dvir described stem cells as powerful cells that can be directed towards becoming different specialised cells in the body.
