A research team led by Yang Hee-seok, a professor in the biomedical systems program at Dankook University, has developed a biodegradable nerve regeneration material derived from milk protein that regulates immune responses and promotes the repair of damaged peripheral nerves.
When peripheral nerves are severed by an accident or trauma, the most widely used treatment is autologous nerve grafting — transplanting a section of the patient's own healthy nerve to the damaged site. While the approach is highly effective, it is limited by the amount of nerve tissue available for transplantation and carries the risk of causing additional tissue damage at the donor site.
The newly developed material reduces inflammatory responses and creates an environment conducive to nerve regeneration.
It also promotes neurite outgrowth in nerve cells. In animal experiments involving a 10-millimeter sciatic nerve injury, subjects showed improvements in walking function and nerve signal transmission, and muscle atrophy caused by the nerve damage was significantly reduced. The recovery level approached that of autologous nerve grafting, the current standard of care.
"This research is significant in that milk-derived protein was used not merely as a biomaterial, but as a biosignaling material capable of modulating immune responses and inducing tissue regeneration," Yang said. "We expect it can be extended beyond peripheral nerve regeneration to a wide range of tissue regeneration applications and next-generation bio-interface materials."
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