LAFAYETTE, Ind., Dec. 28 (UPI) -- Purdue University said there is new hope for spinal cord-injury victims through the partnership it announced Tuesday with Medtronic Sofamor Danek.
The Purdue Research Foundation granted exclusive commercial rights to Medtronic, of Memphis, Tenn., to the patented technology developed by Purdue and Texas Tech University that uses polyethylene glycol to treat spinal cord injuries and, hopefully, prevent paralysis.
Richard Borgens, director of the Center for Paralysis Research at Purdue, said PEG treatments "might someday mitigate the devastating effects of paralysis" not only from spinal cord injuries but also from strokes, brain injuries and nerve damage.
A study of dogs that combined PEG injections and surgery within three days of a serious spinal cord injury showed the treatments prevented or reduced permanent damage in most animals, said a Purdue statement. Even when there was paralysis, PEG prevented nerve cells from rupturing and allowed healing.
The research appears in the current Journal of Neurotrauma.
Borgens said PEG treatment promises to be among the biggest advances in restoring spinal cord function since World War II.
