Paraplegic rats have walked after receiving stem cell therapy, new research reveals.
After just three weeks, 42 per cent of the rodents improved their ability to walk and support their weight, a study found.
Some 75 per cent of the animals were able to respond to stimuli on their back legs after being treated, the research adds.
Stem cells differentiate into specialised cells according to where they are in the body, however, for unclear reasons, the therapy was not successful in all of the study’s rats.
Nonetheless, study author Dr Shulamit Levenberg from the Technion-Israel Institute of Technology, said: ‘Although there is still some way to go before it can be applied in humans, this research gives hope.’
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