Stroke Damage Recovery with Adult Stem Cells

Associated Press, January 29, 2008

A faster and more full recovery is possible when stroke victims are treated with transplanted stem cells according to researchers in China, Canada, and Korea. The studies were conducted with bone marrow stem cells (BMSC) and human mesenchymal stem cells (hMSC).

The cells will travel to blood-deprived and damaged areas of the brain and help repair damage caused by stroke regardless of the site of injection. The two studies were both published in the most recent issue of the journal Cell Transplantation.

The subjects tested "exhibited significant reductions in scar size and cell death and improvements in neurological function when compared to controls that received no BMSCs," said Ren-Ke Li, MD, PhD, who is the lead author of the joint Canadian-Chinese study.

Cell Transplantation associate editor Cesar V. Borlongan, Ph.D said that “both studies lend important support to a growing body of laboratory evidence that bone marrow is a remarkable adult stem cell source for transplant therapy following stroke.”