Parkinson’s disease is characterized by the degeneration and death of brain cells, leading to a decline in motor control. One novel therapeutic approach that was thought to have tremendous potential but was previously limited due to poor graft survival is iPSC-derived cell replacement, which involves replacing dead cells with healthy brain cells. Now advancements in regenerative medicine and stem cell technology have improved the feasibility of this approach.
One of the issues with stem cell brain repair has been that induced stem cells needed to be transplanted into the brain at a very early stage in their conversion, and the vast majority of the cells did not continue to convert once in the brain into the mature cells that are required for the therapy to work.
To solve that problem, researchers at the University of Galway discovered that transplanting immature brain cells in a collagen hydrogel dramatically improved their survival and maturation in the brain. Their findings were published in the Journal of Neural Engineering.
According to Professor Eilís Dowd, the lead neuroscientist on the study, “Our hydrogel nurtures, supports, and protects the cells after they are transplanted into the brain, improving their maturation and reparative ability. We hope that continued development of this promising gel will lead to a significant improvement in brain repair approaches for people living with Parkinson’s.”