Anyone who has or is suffering from a neurodegenerative disorder such as Parkinson’s disease and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), also known as Lou Gehrig’s disease, currently has no hope for a cure.  New research to come out of Tel Aviv University, however, suggests that stem cells may very well be the answer to protecting the human brain against a number of neurodegenerative disorders.

The Journal of Stem Cells Reviews and Reports has published the study that was spearheaded by Professor Daniel Offen and Professor Eldad Melamed from Tel Aviv University’s Sackler Faculty of Medicine and Felsenstein Medical Research Center.

Their team developed the technology of extracting stem cells and using them to protect the brain.  This patent-pending technology has been under development for 10 years, and clinical studies have already begun in Jerusalem and are about to begin in Boston.

The process involves having stem cells withdrawn from the patient’s own bone marrow.  When this happens, those cells then turn into astrocyte-like cells.  These astrocyte-like cells then release neurotrophic factors (also known as neuroprotectants), which have proven to play an important role in slowing the progression of ALS. 

ALS is a debilitating degenerative disease where one’s motor neurons begin to fail, which results in paralysis of a patient’s limbs and organs.

Professor Offen is hoping that as they are using a patient’s own bone marrow that they are bypassing common safety and ethical issues that other embryonic stem cell research often faces. 

Once the stem cells from the bone marrow were turned into astrocyte-like cells, Offen and his team began testing their idea on mice.  As Offen explains, “In the mouse model, we were able to show that the bone marrow derived stem cells prevent degeneration in the brain following injection of selective neurotoxins.”  The research also showed that having these cells transplanted in the mouse models increased the survival rate of those mice that had ALS, as well as significantly delayed the onset of motor dysfunction.

Offen says that this is a very successful method in being able to differentiate bone marrow stem cells into astrocyte-like cells, while also not manipulating the genetic material of that cell.  According to Offen, they are the very first team of researchers who have been able to show the effectiveness of this technology in several different models of neurodegenerative diseases.

The technology has since been licensed to BrainStorm Cell Therapeutics and clinical-grade product has been named NurOwn™.  Clinical trials have already begun at Jerusalem’s Hadassah Medical Centre, and the Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston has recently agreed to begin trials as well.  Studies are on-going so that the efficacy and the safety of this treatment can be evaluated; however Offen believes that there should not be any adverse reactions as the stem cells are being drawn from the same patient who is receiving them.

Offen says that the treatments available to treat diseases like ALS are only to try and alleviate the symptoms of the diseases, rather than actually “repair existing damage”.  However, Offen hopes that with this new technology, a number of neurodegenerative diseases such as ALS, Huntington’s and Parkinson’s disease can not only be treated, but cured.