Early signs that adult bone-marrow stem cells could regenerate brain tissue (p 1432)
Findings of a preliminary study in this week's issue of THE LANCET suggest that transplanted adult bone-marrow cells could regenerate nerve cells in the brains of human stem-cell recipients. These early findings, if confirmed in future research, have implications for the treatment of neurodegenerative disorders such as Parkinson's disease. Ethical concerns over the use of embryonic stem cells has focused attention on the potential of adult bone-marrow cells to stimulate new cell growth in transplant recipients. Previous research has shown that the transplantation of adult human bone-marrow cells can generate new nerve cells in the brains of mice; a recent Lancet study (Lancet 2003; 361: 1084