Idiopathic Parkinson's disease patient‐derived induced pluripotent stem cells function as midbrain dopaminergic neurons in rodent brains

T Kikuchi, A Morizane, D Doi, K Okita… - Journal of …, 2017 - Wiley Online Library
T Kikuchi, A Morizane, D Doi, K Okita, M Nakagawa, H Yamakado, H Inoue, R Takahashi…
Journal of Neuroscience Research, 2017Wiley Online Library
Patient‐specific induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) are a promising source for cell
transplantation therapy. In Parkinson's disease (PD) patients, however, their vulnerability
and the transmission of pathological α‐Synuclein are possible drawbacks that may prevent
PD‐specific iPSCs (PDiPSCs) from being used in clinical settings. In this study, we
generated iPSCs from idiopathic PD patients and found that there was no significant
vulnerability between dopaminergic (DA) neurons generated from healthy individuals and …
Patient‐specific induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) are a promising source for cell transplantation therapy. In Parkinson's disease (PD) patients, however, their vulnerability and the transmission of pathological α‐Synuclein are possible drawbacks that may prevent PD‐specific iPSCs (PDiPSCs) from being used in clinical settings. In this study, we generated iPSCs from idiopathic PD patients and found that there was no significant vulnerability between dopaminergic (DA) neurons generated from healthy individuals and idiopathic PD patients. PDiPSC‐derived DA neurons survived and functioned in the brains of PD model rats. In addition, in the brains of α‐Synuclein transgenic mice, PDiPSC‐derived DA neurons did not cause pathological α‐Synuclein accumulation in the host brain or in the grafts. These results suggested that iPSCs derived from idiopathic PD patients are feasible as donor cells for autologous transplantation to treat PD. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
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