We are extremely happy to join in congratulating a team of doctors from Wroclaw Medical University. Thanks to the pioneering course of treatment they administered to a 40-year-old patient whose spinal cord had been severed, the man could resume walking with the help of orthopaedic equipment.
The therapy involved a method of implanting the patient’s ensheathing olfactory cells into the damaged area. The cells, normally responsible for the replenishment of frequently damaged and renewed olfactory neurons, stimulate the regeneration of the severed spinal cord; their particular properties were discovered and described by professor Geoffrey Raisman from University College London’s Institute of Neurology.
The research on the use of ensheathing olfactory cells in treating spinal cord injuries has been carried out by a team led by professor Włodzimierz Jarmundowicz in collaboration with professor Raisman. The research is co-financed by the NCN under its HARMONIA 3 funding scheme.