Printer friendly version Nerve cells grow on nanocellulose 19
March 2012 Chalmers University of Technology Researchers from
Chalmers and the University of Gothenburg have shown that
nanocellulose stimulates the formation of neural networks. This
is the first step toward creating a three-dimensional model of
the brain. Such a model could elevate brain research to totally
new levels, with regard to Alzheimer’s disease and Parkinson’s
disease, for example. Over a period of two years the research
group has been trying to get human nerve cells to grow on
nanocellulose. “This has been a great challenge,” says Paul
Gatenholm, Professor of Biopolymer Technology at Chalmers.‟Until
recently the cells were dying after a while, since we weren’t
able to get them to adhere to the scaffold. But after many
experiments we discovered a method to get them to attach to the
scaffold by making it more positively charged. Now we have a
stable method for cultivating nerve cells on nanocellulose.”
When the nerve cells finally attache