Peptide hydrogels could help heal traumatic brain injuries

Traumatic brain injury (TBI)—defined as a bump, blow or jolt to the head that disrupts normal brain function—sent 2.5 million people in the U.S. to the emergency room in 2014, according to statistics from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Today, researchers report a self-assembling peptide hydrogel that, when injected into the brains of rats with TBI, increased blood vessel regrowth and neuronal survival.