Sutures alone are sufficient to support regeneration across a gap in the continuity of the sciatic nerve in rats
We have proposed that it is sufficient to provide a simple substratum on which regenerating axone may traverse a gap in a peripheral nerve. To test this hypothesis we set up a new experimental model in which sutures where used to bridge a 10 mm long defect in a peripheral nerve. A defect was created bilaterally in 25 rat sciatic nerves. The cut ends of the nerve were joined by three laps of a cont