Scientists at Penn State and Duke University have identified a gene associated with regeneration of injured nerve cells. The team, led by Melissa Rolls, assistant professor of biochemistry and molecular biology at Penn State, has found that a mutation in a single gene can entirely shut down the process by which axons -- the parts of the nerve cell that are responsible for sending signals to other cells--regrow themselves after being cut or damaged. We are hopeful that this discovery will open the door to new research related to spinal-cord and other neurological disorders in humans, Rolls said.