Cell therapy for Parkinson's disease: what next?

A Bjorklund, JH Kordower - Movement Disorders, 2013 - Wiley Online Library
A Bjorklund, JH Kordower
Movement Disorders, 2013Wiley Online Library
The idea to use transplants of dopamine‐producing cells to substitute for the lost midbrain
dopamine neurons in Parkinson's disease (PD) goes back to the 1970s. In this review we
give an overview of the history of cell transplantation in animal models of PD, and
summarize the experience gained from the open‐label and placebo‐controlled clinical trials
performed so far using intrastriatal transplants of human fetal dopamine neuroblasts. Further
development of this therapeutic approach face numerous challenges, for example in the …
Abstract
The idea to use transplants of dopamine‐producing cells to substitute for the lost midbrain dopamine neurons in Parkinson's disease (PD) goes back to the 1970s. In this review we give an overview of the history of cell transplantation in animal models of PD, and summarize the experience gained from the open‐label and placebo‐controlled clinical trials performed so far using intrastriatal transplants of human fetal dopamine neuroblasts. Further development of this therapeutic approach face numerous challenges, for example in the development of protocols that allow generation of fully functional and safe midbrain dopamine neurons from stem cells. Based on recent promising advancements, efforts are now being made to develop standardized and efficient protocols, and adapt these protocols to good laboratory practice (GLP)/good manufacturing practice (GMP) conditions, to move this technology closer to clinical translation. © 2013 Movement Disorder Society
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