Assignment task:
If encountered a spinal cord injury the initial injury would be the mechanical trauma that causes the breakage of bones, blood vessels, cell membranes, axons etc. During secondary the cells in the vertebral column can no longer receive nutrients or oxygen from the blood vessels. They cannot perform cellular processes to create energy. The blood pressure in the spinal cord would increase from the primary mechanical injury however the bodies overall blood pressure would decrease causing the body to go into shock. The neurons would experience an increase in sodium with its positive charge but would be unable to pump in out via potassium pump from lack of energy. The cell would then revert to the calcium channel pump. However, all the influx of calcium would signal cell death. This would release the cells inner contents including glutamate (neurotransmitter). The increase of glutamate in the extracellular space would lead to surrounding neurons to signal/fire causing them to be trapped in the excitatory cycle leading to further cell death. Inflammation would come with auto phages trying to ingest the dead cells which would help slow down the cycle a bit and a scar would form. However the scar is not re-growth of neurons so that function is lost and interesting research is targeting both Ca channels and glutamate receptors.
Can you further discuss why Calcium influx is so detrimental in a spinal cord injury? How is electrical charge impacted?