• Tissue clearing technology enables high-resolution 3D visualization of neuronal morphology in chronic spinal cord injury, revealing soma atrophy, dendrite fragmentation, and axonal degeneration.
• In a rat model of chronic spinal cord injury, tissue clearing combined with NeuN immunofluorescence clearly demonstrated structural disruption, including loss of gray matter layering and white matter integrity.
• The technology provides a powerful tool to bridge the gap between functional deficits and structural pathology, offering a more comprehensive understanding of spinal cord injury mechanisms.
• Tissue clearing technology holds promise for advancing preclinical research and therapeutic evaluation in spinal cord injury, though challenges remain for application in larger tissues.