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Review
. 2019 Aug;14(8):1343-1351.
doi: 10.4103/1673-5374.253511.

Therapeutic strategies for peripheral nerve injury: decellularized nerve conduits and Schwann cell transplantation

Gong-Hai Han  1 , Jiang Peng  2 , Ping Liu  3 , Xiao Ding  4 , Shuai Wei  4 , Sheng Lu  5 , Yu Wang  2
Affiliations
Review

Therapeutic strategies for peripheral nerve injury: decellularized nerve conduits and Schwann cell transplantation

Gong-Hai Han et al. Neural Regen Res. 2019 Aug.

Abstract

In recent years, the use of Schwann cell transplantation to repair peripheral nerve injury has attracted much attention. Animal-based studies show that the transplantation of Schwann cells in combination with nerve scaffolds promotes the repair of injured peripheral nerves. Autologous Schwann cell transplantation in humans has been reported recently. This article reviews current methods for removing the extracellular matrix and analyzes its composition and function. The development and secretory products of Schwann cells are also reviewed. The methods for the repair of peripheral nerve injuries that use myelin and Schwann cell transplantation are assessed. This survey of the literature data shows that using a decellularized nerve conduit combined with Schwann cells represents an effective strategy for the treatment of peripheral nerve injury. This analysis provides a comprehensive basis on which to make clinical decisions for the repair of peripheral nerve injury.

Keywords: Schwann cell; decellularization; extracellular matrix; nerve conduits; nerve regeneration; neural regeneration; peripheral nerve injury.

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Conflict of interest statement

None

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Main methods for the clinical treatment of different peripheral nerve injuries. Nerve implantation (the red color) indicates that it can be used whether the nerve defect is < 3 cm or > 3 cm.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Schwann cell development and myelination. Neural crest cells can differentiate into various cell types, including cardiac cells, melanocytes, neurons, SCP, border cap cells, connective tissue of the head and skeleton tissue of the head. A small fraction of immature SCs are derived from border cap cells, but most are derived from SCP. SCP differentiates into immature SCs by proliferation and migration under the action of ErBb2/3, NRG1, endothelins and Notch signaling molecules. Immature SCs partially encapsulate the axons to form the myelin sheath through a process of radial sorting, and the other part is transformed into non-myelinating SCs. SCP: Schwann cell precursor; NRG1: neuregulin-1; SCs: Schwann cells. Adapted from Monk et al. (2015).
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