Another Interview With Dr. Jeanne Loring, America's Leading Stem Cell Researcher for Parkinson's Disease.

[jimcaster]

I’m working on a therapy for Parkinson’s disease for two reasons: first, I think I know how to do it, and second, because of all the wonderful people with Parkinson’s disease who I have met as a result of my work.

stemcellsjournals.onlinelib...

[Fed1000]

Thanks Jim.

[sharoncrayn]

Jim,

Some time ago, I did a review of the various stem cell preclinicals and Phase 1s CTs, and I am somewhat perplexed.

Given the complexity and cost (no idea but I assume very expensive) of the treatment, the results were less than astounding. I hesitate to suggest it, but this approach seems very similar to all the promises made with gene (mutation) therapies. They identified the mutations (at least some of them) for various diseases, but nothing remarkable was done with the information because they had no means to directly reverse the genetic mutation.

Perhaps you see something different in terms of results in these Phase 1s (seldom publish preclinical results, so I I have no idea what happened, but I assume they met their safety markers.).

I totally understand what they are trying to do. The idea is that stem cell therapy in sufficient magnitude can raise dead brain cells from the grave and give these cells new life. The question is which brain cells are they going to raise from the dead specifically? Or is this therapy similar to chemo and radiation where everything in the brain gets a hit...some good and some bad?

In some respects, this approach from my perspective is somewhat similar to Deep Brain Stimulation. The DBS is trying to stimulate the dormant (dead?) brain cell to "fire". The spark plug/injector is fouled, so we add a can of additive at first. Then, when that doesn't work, we replace the plugs/injectors in the hope it isn't anything else. But what caused the fouled plugs/injectors in the first place, remains.

S

[sharoncrayn in reply to sharoncrayn]

How many brain cells (neurons)?

Some say 86 Billion (Herculano, et. al.) ; some say 100 billion; some say "I don't know".

What happens if a billion or so are dead? or more?

PD.

S