Undergraduates Developing Biomaterials for Use within the Central Nervous System

Jared Cregg is using the “Apotome” microscope to characterize laminin-1 adsorption onto the fibers.

Axons integrate and spread out
onto a sol-gel glass material.

Dr. Ryan Gilbert

While neurons do have the potential to regenerate within the spinal cord, they form dystrophic growth cones at the border where normal tissue meets the astroglial scar and are generally unable to grow through the injury site.  Thus, individuals with spinal cord injury endure life-long sensory and motor deficits.  Additionally, inserting electrodes into the central nervous system to regulate neuronal firing initiates an injury response, creating a cellular sheath that surrounds the implant.  This sheath restricts communication between neurons and the inserted electrode. 

Dr. Ryan Gilbert’s Regeneration and Repair Laboratory is designing polymeric nerve guides that direct neuronal outgrowth.  Neurons grown on these fibers grow along the fibers in a directed manner.  Undergraduate student Jared Cregg is developing these fibers to contain a coating of the glycoprotein laminin-1.  It is thought that the combination of the fibers with laminin-1 will facilitate faster, directed neuronal outgrowth than by the fibers themselves.

Ryan J. Gilbert, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor

Office: 309 Minerals and Materials Eng. Bldg.

Email: rgilbert@mtu.edu

Telephone: 906-487-1740
Fax: 906-487-1717

Regeneration and Repair Laboratory
328 M&M Building

Ryan J. Gilbert C.V.