Clinical significance and potential translation of neural regeneration and functional recovery in monkeys after spinal cord injury

The recent manuscript by Dr. Rao and colleagues (Rao et al.,2018) reports on a new combinational strategy that significantly promotes neural regeneration and improves motor and sensory function in nonhuman primates after severe spinal cord injury (SCI). This acute reparative strategy that included the insertion of neurotrophin 3-loaded chitosan biodegradable material into a 1-cm gap of the hemisectioned spinal cord had previously been tested in rodent models of SCI. In addition to showing that this reparative approach led