However, the above rat models of facial nerve defect allowed for experimental nerve transplantation into defects of up to only about 7 mm in length due to the small size of the animals, and were too small to reproduce facial nerve regeneration surgery in human patients in clinical practice. We then developed a method to measure compound muscle action potential (CMAP) in these rat models of facial nerve regeneration, for which no electrophysiological evaluation method for regenerated facial nerves had been established. Toward establishing new surgical treatments for facial nerve palsy, we have developed various experimental systems for facial nerve regeneration using rat models of facial nerve defects, including facial nerve regeneration in rats using a novel nerve conduit made of polylactic acid nonwoven fabric, facial nerve regeneration in rats using a basic fibroblast growth factor drug delivery system, facial nerve regeneration using dedifferentiated fat cells, facial nerve regeneration using adipose-derived stem cells (ADSCs) that were induced in vitro to differentiate into Schwann cell lineages, facial nerve reconstruction in rats using an artificial nerve conduit containing dental pulp cells extracted from incisor teeth, and facial nerve regeneration using an artificial nerve conduit made of a silicone tube containing a non-cultured stromal vascular fraction as the source of ADSCs.
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