Amphiphilic peptide-tagged N-cadherin forms radial glial-like fibers that enhance neuronal migration in injured brain and promote sensorimotor recovery.

Biomaterials

Department of Developmental and Regenerative Neurobiology, Institute of Brain Science, Nagoya City University Graduate School of Medical Sciences, Nagoya, Aichi, 467-8601, Japan; Division of Neural Development and Regeneration, National Institute of Physiological Sciences, Okazaki, Aichi, 444-8585, Japan. Electronic address:

Published: March 2023

AI Article Synopsis

  • * A new approach utilizes an amphiphilic peptide (Ncad-mRADA) combined with hydrogels to promote the migration of neuroblasts (young neurons) to damaged areas of the brain.
  • * Testing showed that Ncad-mRADA not only aided neuroblast movement toward injured sites but also significantly enhanced neuronal regeneration and recovery in neonatal brain injury, showcasing its potential as a regenerative therapy.

Article Abstract

The mammalian brain has very limited ability to regenerate lost neurons and recover function after injury. Promoting the migration of young neurons (neuroblasts) derived from endogenous neural stem cells using biomaterials is a new and promising approach to aid recovery of the brain after injury. However, the delivery of sufficient neuroblasts to distant injured sites is a major challenge because of the limited number of scaffold cells that are available to guide neuroblast migration. To address this issue, we have developed an amphiphilic peptide [(RADA)-(RADG)] (mRADA)-tagged N-cadherin extracellular domain (Ncad-mRADA), which can remain in mRADA hydrogels and be injected into deep brain tissue to facilitate neuroblast migration. Migrating neuroblasts directly contacted the fiber-like Ncad-mRADA hydrogel and efficiently migrated toward an injured site in the striatum, a deep brain area. Furthermore, application of Ncad-mRADA to neonatal cortical brain injury efficiently promoted neuronal regeneration and functional recovery. These results demonstrate that self-assembling Ncad-mRADA peptides mimic both the function and structure of endogenous scaffold cells and provide a novel strategy for regenerative therapy.

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Source
http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.biomaterials.2023.122003DOI Listing

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