Researchers at Johns Hopkins University have studied how the visual system in the brain recovers after traumatic injury, challenging the belief that neurons cannot regenerate. The study, led by Athanasios Alexandris and colleagues and published in JNeurosci, used mice to investigate this process.
The team observed connections from cells in the eye to the brain following injury. They found that surviving cells compensated for those lost by growing extra branches to connect with more neurons in the brain. This growth restored connections between the eye and brain to levels seen before injury. Measurements indicated these new connections were functional.
The study also found differences between male and female mice. Female mice showed delayed or incomplete repair compared to males. According to Alexandris, "We didn't expect to see sex differences, but this aligns with clinical observations in humans. Women experience more lingering symptoms from concussion or brain injury than men. Understanding the mechanism behind the branch sprouting we observed—and what delays or prevents this mechanism in females—could eventually point toward strategies to promote recovery from traumatic or other forms of neural injury."
The researchers plan further studies into why these mechanisms differ between sexes.
