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Stem Cell Research on Neurological Disorders

Neurological disorders are diseases of the nervous system; they can effect the brain, spinal cord, cranial nerves, peripheral nerves, nerve roots, autonomic nervous system or neuromuscular junction. Stem cells are cells that can develop into different types of cells inside the body. Many scientists believe that stem cells can be used to treat neurological disorders.

  1. Two Types Of Stem Cells

    • According to the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, there are two main types of stem cells: embryonic stem cells and somatic stem cells. The main difference between the two types of cells is that embryonic stem cells can morph into any type of cell, whereas somatic stem cells are relatively restricted. However, both types of cells have the potential to treat neurological disorders.

    History

    • Somatic stem cells have been used for various treatments for over 40 years. For example, they've been used in bone marrow transplants. However, the study of using embryonic stem cells for treating neurological disorders is relatively new. Scientists began doing experiments with human embryonic stem cells in 1998 when Dr. James Thomson discovered a way to isolate and grow the cells. In 2009, the company Geron was cleared by the FDA to begin the first human clinical trial of cells derived from human embryonic stem cells.

    How Can Stem Cells Treat Neurological Disorders?

    • There are two main ways that scientists believe stem cells can help treat neurological disorders. First, scientists believe that we can gain a better understanding of cell development by studying stem cells. Many neurological disorders are the result of a something gone awry during cell development. Thus, by understanding cell development, scientists hope to figure out a way to prevent or correct these developmental errors.

      Scientists also believe that stem cells can be used to replace the damaged cells and tissues that characterize many neurological disorders.

    Controversy

    • According to Raymond G. Bohlin, the executive director of Probe Ministries, research involving embryonic stem cells is controversial because producing these cells requires the destruction of the human embryo. Bohlin notes that somatic stem cell research is not controversial because the cells can be retrieved from the individual requiring the therapy.

    Key Achievements In Stem Cell Research

    • Stem cell research to treat neurological disorders is still a relatively new field of study. Nevertheless, the study of embryonic and somatic stem cells has already produced several key achievements. In 1999, researchers at the Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles removed stem cells from a patient with Parkinson's disease and used them to reproduce 6 million dopaminergic neutral stem cells. Doctors then reintroduced these cells into the patients brain tissue, resulting in a 62 percent increase in dopamine and a 40 to 50 percent improvement in some motor tasks.

      In 2002, research at the University of Minnesota Medical School discovered that somatic stem cells, generally thought to be relatively restricted, may actually differentiate into different cell types in some narrow circumstances.

      In 2007, researchers at the Oregon Health and Science University successfully cloned monkey embryos from the skin cells of an adult monkey and then extracted stem cells from them. This marks the first time the procedure has been done on an animal other than a mouse. The hope is that this same method might be used for humans. Moreover, it provides the potential to further study diseases in monkeys that mimic diseases in humans.

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