Clinical Researchers State the First Stem Cell Transplant for Parkinson’s Disease is Almost Here
The announcement out of Lund University that Stem Cell treatment for Parkinson’s may be coming soon was significant news.
Parkinson’s is one of several neurodegenerative diseases. Upwards of 60,000 people receive the diagnosis every year and almost a million Americans have the disease.
Parkinson’s is caused by a gradual loss of the brain cells that manufacture dopamine. Our bodies use dopamine to help control muscle movement and our emotions. People diagnosed with the disease experience a loss of facial expression, tremors, and rigid muscles.
Some drugs provide relief from the symptoms; but no cure exists.
Dopamine Production Breakthrough for Parkinson’s Disease
Lund University researchers have identified a technique that is leading them to promising results. Prior research conducted by this team demonstrated how healthy dopamine-producing neurons (called mesencephalic dopamine neurons or mesDA for short) could be created using stem cells.
The research team has now taken their work a step further by devising a technique for grafting the mesDA neurons to a patient. They used cutting edge stem cell engineering that allowed them to monitor a very specific chemical triggered by the cellular RNA.
We have identified a specific set of markers that correlate with high dopaminergic yield and graft function after transplantation in animal models of Parkinson’s disease. Guided by this information, we have developed a better and more accurate methods for producing dopamine cells for clinical use in a reproducible way. Primary research author – Agnete Kirkeby.
The results are significant. They have demonstrated a viable path to stem cell treatment via replacement therapy for Parkinson’s. The next key is to gain greater control over the cells before treatment can be tested in humans.
References:
Nigel Kee, Nikolaos Volakakis, Agnete Kirkeby, Lina Dahl, Helena Storvall, Sara Nolbrant, Laura Lahti, Åsa K. Björklund, Linda Gillberg, Eliza Joodmardi, Rickard Sandberg, Malin Parmar, Thomas Perlmann. Single-Cell Analysis Reveals a Close Relationship between Differentiating Dopamine and Subthalamic Nucleus Neuronal Lineages. Cell Stem Cell, 2016; DOI: 10.1016/j.stem.2016.10.003
