FRIDAY, May 31, 2002 (HealthDayNews) -- Sometimes, something inert can keep something else alive.
That appears to be the case with xenon, one of the inert gases most people learned about in chemistry class.
Scientists at Imperial College of Science, Technology and Medicine in London say that xenon could help protect damaged nerve cells from dying and prove effective in treating people with strokes, and brain and spinal cord injuries.
The research, published in the latest issue of the journal Anesthesiology, shows that xenon acts as a neuroprotectant by blocking the effects of a particular type of receptor found in the pathway that leads to nerve cell death. This receptor is a glutamate, a salt derivative of glutamatic acid, an amino acid that is a key element in animal and plant proteins.
Nerve cells can't regenerate when they die, but xenon gas may provide a way to stop these cells from dying in the first place, the scientists say.
They looked at its effectiveness in pre-clinical trials. Clinical trials are planned for the United Kingdom and the United States.
Xenon is odorless, colorless and nontoxic. It occurs naturally in air and is used in anesthesia, light bulbs and as window insulation.
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The Reeve-Irvine Research Center at the University of California at Irvine is dedicated to finding ways to bring about nerve cell regeneration.
