CLP290 is the name of the compound that scientists at Boston Children’s Hospital have discovered plays an important role in restoring the ability to move limbs after spinal cord injury.
Testing on mice revealed that CLP290 restores the ability to move paralyzed limbs after four to five weeks of treatment, with consequences being almost negligible. Two weeks after the treatment ended, New Atlas reports, the ability to walk in mice that received the actual drug was significantly greater than in those in the control group that received a placebo.
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The compound has been found to restore balance to signals that disappear as a result of injury. During spinal cord injury, inhibitory neurons lose the ability to process inhibitory signals from the brain, leading to the inability to move limbs.
The research team discovered that CLP290 allows inhibitory neurons to reprocess inhibitory signals from the brain. A key role in this process is played by the KCC2 protein, which neurons produce far less of after spinal cord injury, causing it to lose its function.
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CLP290 restores the necessary level of KCC2, thereby ensuring the normal function of these neurons.
Scientists plan to continue researching the role of KCC2, as well as other compounds that could restore the amount of protein.
