Regenerate | Restore | Rebuild
Pioneering a New Era of Nerve Regeneration
AXONOVA MEDICAL IS WORKING TO REPAIR major nerve injuries
The Problem
Repair of the nervous system requires the restoration of axons - specialized fibers of the nervous system that relay electrical signals throughout the body. Replacement of nerve cells simply isn’t sufficient if these cells aren’t connected to one another or target tissues (e.g., muscle). Despite the development of various promising technologies, the failure of these strategies in humans results from their inability to grow axons over long, clinically relevant distances as well as guide their growth to the appropriate target tissue.
Current Clinical Practices
The primary nerve repair strategy implemented by surgeons for larger injuries is a nerve autologous graft (autograft). An autograft repair necessitates removing healthy nerve from one part of the body to replace damaged nerve in another part, resulting in two surgeries and donor site morbidity. For shorter gap injuries, commercially available biomaterial-based conduits are used to repair a nerve defect. Current repair strategies remain exceedingly inefficient in promoting functional restoration and repair of the damaged nerve, leaving patients with a decreased quality of life.
Axonova's Solution
Axonova has developed tissue engineered nerve grafts consisting of living, aligned axon tracts spanning several centimeters. These nerve grafts take inspiration from developmental mechanisms of axon guidance to promote axon regeneration following injury in patients. There are only two known mechanisms that can grow and target axons over long, clinically relevant distances and Axonova discovered them both. These mechanisms address critical gaps in standard of care and cannot be replicated by other products or strategies. As a result, our discoveries not only represent a paradigm shift in the field, but will serve as the basis for revolutionary products that will define new fields of study and medical practice.