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CNS & Neurological Disorders - Drug Targets

Editor-in-Chief

ISSN (Print): 1871-5273
ISSN (Online): 1996-3181

Human Embryonic Stem Cell Therapies for Neurodegenerative Diseases

Author(s): Eva Tomaskovic-Crook and Jeremy M. Crook

Volume 10, Issue 4, 2011

Page: [440 - 448] Pages: 9

DOI: 10.2174/187152711795564001

Price: $65

Abstract

There is a renewed enthusiasm for the clinical translation of human embryonic stem (hES) cells. This is abetted by putative clinically-compliant strategies for hES cell maintenance and directed differentiation, greater understanding of and accessibility to cells through formal cell registries and centralized cell banking for distribution, the revised US government policy on funding hES cell research, and paradoxically the discovery of induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cells. Additionally, as we consider the constraints (practical and fiscal) of delivering cell therapies for global healthcare, the more efficient and economical application of allogeneic vs autologous treatments will bolster the clinical entry of hES cell derivatives. Neurodegenerative disorders such as Parkinsons disease are primary candidates for hES cell therapy, although there are significant hurdles to be overcome. The present review considers key advances and challenges to translating hES cells into novel therapies for neurodegenerative diseases, with special consideration given to Parkinsons disease and Alzheimers disease. Importantly, despite the focus on degenerative brain disorders and hES cells, many of the issues canvassed by this review are relevant to systemic application of hES cells and other pluripotent stem cells such as iPS cells.

Keywords: Neurodegenerative diseases, cell therapy, stem cell transplantation, human embryonic stem cells, pluripotent stem cells, clinical compliance, parkinson's disease, huntington's disease, alzheimer's disease, multiple sclerosis, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, IVF, SCNT, PINK1, tumorigenicity


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