Laboratory requests approval for stem cell treatment for Parkinson's

Japanese laboratory Sumitomo Pharma announced on Tuesday (5) that it has submitted an application for authorization to market a treatment against Parkinson's disease that consists of transplanting stem cells into a patient's brain, following a successful clinical study.

The trial showed that the treatment, which uses induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cells, was safe and effective in improving symptoms, according to the Kyoto University researchers.

iPS cells, created from adult cells, are genetically reprogrammed to multiply into any type of cell, depending on where in the body they are transplanted.

The study focused on seven Parkinson's disease patients, aged 50 to 69: each received five or ten million cells implanted into both sides of the brain.

iPS cells from healthy donors were transformed into precursors of dopamine-producing brain cells, which are no longer present in people with Parkinson's disease.

The patients were monitored for two years, and no significant adverse effects were observed, according to the study. Four patients showed improvement in their symptoms.

The results of the clinical trial, coordinated by Kyoto University, were published in the scientific journal “Nature” in April.

Sumitomo Pharma is also conducting a clinical trial in the United States.

Parkinson's disease, which along with Alzheimer's is one of the main pathologies affecting the brain, is a chronic and degenerative neurological disease that affects the motor system, often causing tremors and motor difficulties.

More than 10 million people worldwide suffer from Parkinson's disease, according to the Parkinson's Foundation, one of the leading American organizations dedicated to fighting the disease.

Currently available therapies “improve symptoms without slowing or halting the progression of the disease,” explains the foundation.

iPS cells are created by stimulating mature, already specialized cells to return them to a juvenile state, which is equivalent to cloning without using an embryo.

Cells can be transformed into different cell types and their use is a key area of medical research.

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