The New England Regional Spinal Cord Injury Center presented its 5th annual consumer research conference: Stepping Forward Staying Informed: Exploring Recent Advances in Treatment of Spinal Cord Injury: Stem Cells, FES, Spasticity, and Depression. The conference was hosted by the Boston Medical Center on Oct. 3rd at the Boston Convention and Exhibition Center. The Boston Medical Center and Gaylord Hospital together form the NERSCIC, one of only 14 model SCI centers in the country.
Some of the most exciting information shared that day, came from presenter Hans S. Keirstead, PhD, Co-Director, Stem Cell Research Center, from the University of California at Irvine. Dr. Keirstead spoke about the use of stem cells in SCI research. He, along with colleagues at the Reeve-Irvine Research Center, are conducting research using stem cells to treat acute, sub-acute and chronic spinal cord injuries. During the acute phase, just after a person sustains a spinal cord injury, much of the damage to the spinal cord ensues due to inflammation around the spinal cord.
Keirstead’s team has been able to isolate a certain amino acid involved in this inflammatory response and minimize the damage caused by this process, thus reducing damage to the spinal cord caused by traumatic injuries. Keirstead also spoke about treatment in the sub-acute phase of spinal cord injury. Much like electrical wire, our nervous tissue has a special insulation that surrounds and encases each neuron. This insulation helps to relay messages from the brain to the body and the body back up to the brain. Researchers have found a way to use stem cells, to create the cells that make this insulation around our neurons/nerves, helping to restore the nervous tissue’s ability to send messages.
The team at the Reeve-Irvine Research Center, has also been able to use stem cells to create the cells found in the spinal cord that are responsible for telling the muscle to move (motor neuron). They found that in order for these new motor neurons to grow out to the muscle, they must also trigger the muscle itself to secrete a certain growth factor to help the new nerve grow to the correct target. The hope is that these new motor nerves will grow out to the muscle and create a pathway for movement messages to travel, restoring motion. It is important to note that this research is still in the initial stages. Not all of the research described above has been conducted and/or approved for use in humans.
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