angel7
04-18-2002, 11:42 AM
"One of the most significant findings of this study was the patient's combined clinical improvement over time," study author Michel) in Chica F. Lévesque, MD, FRSC, says in a news release. "After six months of the transplantation culture in vitro, the number of neural stem cells exceeded several millions." Lévesque is the director of Cedars-Sinai Medical Center's Neurofunctional Surgery Center.
The patient was a 57-year-old man diagnosed at age 46 years with idiopathic PD, initially responsive to dopaminergic agents. When his severe tremor became disabling, neural stem cells were removed during a single stereotactic craniotomy, expanded in vitro over several months, then transplanted in the left putamen.
At 3 months after transplantation, the patient's motor scores on his usual medications improved by 37% on blinded neurologic examination, and fluoro-DOPA PET studies showed a 55.6% increase in dopamine uptake. At 1 year posttransplantation, his Unified Parkinson's Disease Rating Scale (UPDRS) improved by 81% while on medication and 83% while off medication. Equivalent levodopa intake was reduced by 50%.
Potential advantages of autologous neuronal transplantation as a treatment in PD include avoidance of ethical concerns surrounding embryonic stem cells, absence of immune reactions at the site of transplantation, improved survival of grafted cells, lower risks of transmission of infectious disease, and no need for immunosuppressants or steroids.
"This form of treatment has the potential for making neural stem cell therapy acceptable and available to a large number of patients," Lévesque says.
Laurie Barclay, MD, is a staff writer with WebMD.
All material on this website is protected by copyright, Copyright © 1994-2002 by Medscape Portals, Inc.
The patient was a 57-year-old man diagnosed at age 46 years with idiopathic PD, initially responsive to dopaminergic agents. When his severe tremor became disabling, neural stem cells were removed during a single stereotactic craniotomy, expanded in vitro over several months, then transplanted in the left putamen.
At 3 months after transplantation, the patient's motor scores on his usual medications improved by 37% on blinded neurologic examination, and fluoro-DOPA PET studies showed a 55.6% increase in dopamine uptake. At 1 year posttransplantation, his Unified Parkinson's Disease Rating Scale (UPDRS) improved by 81% while on medication and 83% while off medication. Equivalent levodopa intake was reduced by 50%.
Potential advantages of autologous neuronal transplantation as a treatment in PD include avoidance of ethical concerns surrounding embryonic stem cells, absence of immune reactions at the site of transplantation, improved survival of grafted cells, lower risks of transmission of infectious disease, and no need for immunosuppressants or steroids.
"This form of treatment has the potential for making neural stem cell therapy acceptable and available to a large number of patients," Lévesque says.
Laurie Barclay, MD, is a staff writer with WebMD.
All material on this website is protected by copyright, Copyright © 1994-2002 by Medscape Portals, Inc.