Stem cells vs. stroke

Health 24.com ^ | 04.10.06

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Researchers say they've lessened the effects of stroke in rats by transplanting stem cells into the rodents' brains. The treatment also seemed to help rats fight a condition similar to human cerebral palsy.  There's no indication yet that the treatment will work in humans, and the lead researcher cautioned that the strategy is no "magic bullet." However, tests in people could begin as early as next year, said Cesario V. Borlongan, an associate professor of neurology at the Medical College of Georgia in Augusta.

Will not be a total cure
The treatment is "not something that will totally cure stroke or cerebral palsy," Borlongan said. Still, he said, it could help.  Despite decades of research, stroke remains extremely common and very difficult to treat. According to Borlongan, 3,000 Americans suffer strokes each day, but only about 100 are helped by newer remedies such as tPA, a powerful clot-busting drug.  Cerebral palsy, a disabling neurological disorder of childhood, currently has no effective treatment, Borlongan noted.  However, because they have the ability to transform themselves into various types of body cells, stem cells have been thought to offer hope as a means of regenerating diseased or injured tissues. In fact, neuroscientists have been experimenting with stem cell transplants in animals for several years, but with mixed results.

In the new study, funded by Athersys Inc., a US biopharmaceutical company, Borlongan and colleagues transplanted human bone marrow cells into the brains of rats who had suffered strokes. By avoiding stem cells sourced from embryos or foetuses, "we feel we've circumvented the ethical as well as political issues," Borlongan noted.  He and his colleagues reported their findings Friday at the American Academy of Neurology annual meeting, in San Diego.

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