Pleiotrophin and peripheral nerve injury.

The proto-oncogene pleiotrophin, discovered in 1989, was considered as a multifunctional growth factor, which played an important role in tumor occurrence, development, and central nervous system. The latest research showed that pleiotrophin signal pathway probably participated in neural repair after peripheral nerve injury, especially in the following critical points, such as the protection of spinal cord neuron, the promotion of the speed of neuron axon regeneration, the guidance of neuron axon regeneration, skeleton muscle reinnervation, and so on. It potentially plays a key role in the guidance of neural axon regeneration in peripheral nervous system and muscle reinnervation. With the deepening of related researches, pleiotrophin gene would become a controllable target for improving the repairing effect of peripheral nerve injury and reconstruction of the neuromuscular junction.