Application of Collagen-Based Scaffolds for the Treatment of Spinal Cord Injuries in Animal Models: A Literature Update

Spinal cord injury (SCI) is a devastating condition with limited regenerative capacity. This review focuses on collagen-based scaffolds as a promising treatment strategy in animal models. Collagen scaffolds can be delivered in various forms and are known to provoke minimal autoimmune response and promote cell adhesion, proliferation, migration, and differentiation. Animal models, particularly rodents, are valuable for SCI research due to their resemblance to human pathology and genomes, offering a cost-effective way to assess treatment effectiveness.

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  Collagen-based scaffolds, when transplanted, showed the most proliferation, and neural stem and progenitor cells survived up to 11 weeks after the transplant.
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  Injectable collagen hydrogel significantly increased functional recovery and reduced glial scarring, macrophage and microglial response in rat models undergoing spinal cord hemisection.
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  Linear ordered collagen scaffolds loaded with human mesenchymal placenta stem cells in canines with complete spinal cord transection resulted in structured new tissue and increased neurons.