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Clinical trials begin next month. The neurodegenerative disease is caused by the lack of dopamine produced by brain cells
Japanese scientists have announced that they will begin clinical trials of treating Parkinson's disease next year by transplanting "reprogrammed" stem cells into the brain in search of a breakthrough
The disease is caused by the lack of dopamine produced by brain cells, and researchers have long been trying to use stem cells to restore normal production of the neurotransmitter chemical.
Clinical Trials Will Begin After Researchers from Kyoto University in Japan were able to use induced pluripotent stem cells (iPS) to restore functional brain cells in monkeys last year.
iPS cells are produced by removing mature cells from an individual – often from skin or blood and reprogramming to behave like embryonic stem cells. They can then be transformed into brain cells producing dopamine.
"This will be the first clinical trial using iPS cells for Parkinson's disease," said Jun Takahashi, a professor at the University's iPS Research and Cellular Application Center.
The center is led by Shinya Yamanaka, who received the 2012 Nobel Prize in Medicine with British scientist John Gurdon for the discovery that adult cells can be transformed into cells similar to the fact that clinical trials use cells iPS rather than human embryonic cells means that treatment would be acceptable in countries like Ireland and in much of Latin America where embryonic cells are banned.
Copyright Thomson Reuters 2018
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