Brain Stem Cells Transplant Approved by FDA

Brain Stem Cells Transplant Approved by FDA

A widely reprinted AP story (available on Newsday, among others) reports that the FDA has given approval to transplant fetal stem cells into the brains of children who suffer from an incurable, fatal degenerative disorder known as Batten disease. The procedure will be done at Stanford University, but still has to be approved by an internal review board. 6 children will be tested.

The stem cells to be transplanted are immature neural cells, some of which are derived from aborted fetuses, which is sure to raise issues. The procedure has shown promise on mice. Batten disease is described by the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Strokes, part of NIH, as follows:

Batten disease is a fatal, inherited disorder of the nervous system that begins in childhood. Early symptoms of this disorder usually appear between the ages of 5 and 10, when parents or physicians may notice a previously normal child has begun to develop vision problems or seizures. In some cases the early signs are subtle, taking the form of personality and behavior changes, slow learning, clumsiness, or stumbling. Over time, affected children suffer mental impairment, worsening seizures, and progressive loss of sight and motor skills. Eventually, children with Batten disease become blind, bedridden, and demented. Batten disease is often fatal by the late teens or twenties.

The disease is caused by a defective gene which leads to a buildup of fats and proteins, known as lipopigments, in the brain and other areas of the body.

The AP story quoted Arthur Caplan, director on the University of Pennsylvania’s Center for Bioethics, as saying, “I'm sure there is no threat to anyone's identity. But we are starting down that road.”

The San Francisco Chronicle reported this morning that the present trial is designed only to assess safety of the procedure and that although beneficial effects are hoped for, the main goal is to do no harm. The study is being sponsored by the Palo Alto biotech company Stem Cells, Inc, which also has information on how to become part of the clinical trial.

This disease seems to be so horrible that worries about altering someone’s brain tissue and identity seem minute compared to the inevitable progression of the illness.

Embryonic Stem Cells Have Electrical Properties

Embryonic Stem Cells Have Electrical Properties

Researchers at Johns Hopkins University have discovered that stem cells can conduct electricity. The press release can be found at EurekAlert. Ronald A. Li, Ph.D., an assistant professor of medicine at The Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine and senior author of the study, said, “Our discovery of functional ion channels, which are valves in a cell's outer membrane allowing the passage of charged atoms, the basis of electricity, provides an important link to the differentiation, or maturation, and cell proliferation, or growth of human ESCs.”

The membrane voltage of many types of cells, including some cancer cells, is altered by potassium. The researchers in this study measured the electric currents of single human ESCs, discovered several channels that allow and control passage of potassium, and observed the electric current's effect on cell differentiation and proliferation. The hope is that targeting specific potassium channels can prevent ESCs from becoming cancerous.

A short UPI version of the story is available at Science Daily, among others. The research was first published online in the journal Stem Cells on August 9, 2005 (“Electrophysiological properties of pluripotent human and mouse embryonic stem cells”) so it is unclear to me why the press release was issued now, more than 2 months later. At any rate, this seems like a promising avenue of research.