ISTOCK, MINERVA STUDIOFour patients with chronic spinal damage and a complete loss of motor and sensory functions below their waists have received transplants of human neural stem cells in a first-of-its-kind clinical trial. A report in Cell Stem Cell today (June 1) documents the procedure and the subsequent clinical follow up of the patients, who exhibit no signs of untoward effects but rather tiny hints of improvement.
“It’s an extremely interesting and important piece of work,” says neurologist Eva Feldman of the University of Michigan who was not involved with the work. “The rodent model results were very compelling and . . . laid the groundwork for this very small, proof-of-concept safety trial.”
While these results seem tantalizing, “the numbers [of patients] are extremely small,” says Feldman, and “the patients themselves notice no change in function or quality of life.”
Three of the four patients were deemed by examiners to have very slight improvements in sensation and muscle movement.
Severe spinal injuries can have devastating consequences, often leaving patients with complete paralysis below the injury site and with little hope of recovery. While there is currently no therapy that can promote neuronal ...
