April 7, 2008 (UPI) - U.S. researchers say they have created a nano-engineered gel that can enable severed spinal cord fibers to regenerate and grow.

Spinal cord injuries often lead to permanent paralysis and loss of sensation because the damaged nerve fibers can't regenerate, Northwestern University scientists said. Although nerve fibers or axons have the capacity to re-grow, they don't because they're blocked by scar tissue that develops around the injury...