Stem cells have been grafted into a Parkinson patient’s brain

Researchers from the Tokyo University have injected iPS stem cells into the brain of a patient with Parkinson’s disease. This clinical trial aims to test whether these cells can regenerate dopamine neurons and relieve symptoms.

Parkinson’s disease is marked by the degeneration of dopamine neurons and results in progressively worsening symptoms such as tremors, limb stiffness and decreased body movement. It affects more than 10 million people worldwide, according to the US Parkinson’s Disease Foundation. Currently available therapies “improve symptoms without slowing the progression of the disease,” says the foundation.

The team injected 2.4 million of these pluripotent cells into the left brain. The man, in his fifties, was well tolerated and will now be under surveillance for two years.

If no problem emerges within the next six months, the researchers will then implant an additional 2.4 million cells, this time in the right part of the patient’s brain.

This trial follows an experiment performed on monkeys with stem cells of human origin that have improved the ability to make movements in primates with a form of Parkinson’s disease.