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The big picture: Nearly two decades ago, Shinya Yamanaka and Kazutoshi Takahashi discovered they could turn mature somatic cells back into stem cells. The scientists predicted these new cells could be the key to regenerative treatments for serious injuries and conditions. Today, another Japanese team has achieved the first promising results of this breakthrough.
Researchers at Keio University have begun using induced pluripotent stem cells (iPS) to treat and maybe even cure severe spinal cord injuries. The iPS technology was first conceived by Shinya Yamanaka in 2006, who later received the Nobel Prize with John Gurdon for discovering that they could reprogram adult cells to return to their pluripotent, stem cell-like state.
The Keio team began working on the iPS-based treatment shortly after Yamanaka announced his discovery. During a recent press conference, physiology professor Hideyuki Okano and his colleagues reported the results of their first clinical iPS trial. The scientists implanted four spinal cord injury patients with pluripotent stem cells to grow millions of new neural cells.
Okano said two patients recovered “some” motor function, with one subject regaining the ability to stand by using a support mechanism. The other two patients didn’t experience any improvement in their condition, although neither suffered any adverse effects after the procedure.
The patient who received the iPS cells injured their spinal cords between 14 and 28 days before the treatment. They also received immunosuppressant drugs to prevent rejection. So far, the researchers have seen no signs of the transplanted cells growing malignantly. The patient who regained his ability to stand is now going through rehabilitation, and he could even regain the ability to walk.
Around 100,000 people are affected by spinal cord injuries in Japan, with rehabilitation being the only treatment currently available to improve their living conditions. Only 10-12 percent of patients regain some motor function through rehabilitation, but the new iPS technology could increase this percentage significantly.
The Keio researchers note that to hail their clinical trial as a potential cure for spinal cord injuries would be premature. While they considered the results successful, the sample size was too small to start getting ahead of themselves. However, having proven the iPS treatment safe, the researchers plan to execute much larger trials through K Pharma, a venture capital company established by Keio University.
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