Collagen-cliondroitin-6-sulfate hydrogel implants in CNS lesion cavities favor glial repair,the differentiation of co-implanted neurons and the growth of axons

Abstract

Collagen chondroitin-6-sulfate hydrogels containing embryonic striatal neurons were implanted into premade brain cavities of the rat striatum. The bioimplant was progressively transformed into a new matrix mostly by the deposition of newly formed collagen and by the ingrowth of glial cells and glial cell processes. At two months, the new matrix has partly restructured the lesion cavity. Cells co-implanted with the hydrogels attached, survived and differentiated while nerve fibers of the host striatum grew into the biomatrix.