KEY advancements to stem cells could help fight a disease affecting one adult in every 350 in the UK.
Scientists at the University of Edinburgh have developed an improved approach which could aid future treatments of Parkinson’s disease.
The researchers created stem cells that are resistant to developing the disease but still maintain the ability to transform into any cell type.
Every hour, two people in the UK are diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease and an estimated 145,000 diagnosed in 2018 alone.
This advance represents a step forward in a new generation of treatments for the condition, in a search which has been advocated by figures such as Scottish comedian Billy Connolly and actor Michael J Fox for the organisation Parkinson’s UK.
Both Connolly and Fox have spoken publicly about their own fight with the disease for which there is currently no cure.
The Glasgow-born comedian was diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease five years ago and has revealed he wishes to aid the search for a cure of the disease by contacting leading Parkinsons’s researchers at Harvard University in Massachusetts.
Earlier this year he announced he wanted to volunteer himself as a subject of similar trials in the US that could help fight the disease.
The stem cells innovated in the University of Edinburgh study could aid the development of a cell replacement therapy, a treatment that was first used in a clinical trial this year.
Dr Tilo Kunath of the Medical Research Council’s Centre for Regenerative Medicine at the University of Edinburgh, who led the study, said: “This could essentially put a shelf life on the potential of cell replacement therapy.”
He added: “We know that Parkinson’s disease spreads from neuron-neuron, invading healthy cells. Our exciting discovery has the potential to considerably improve these emerging treatments.”
The therapy involves transplanting healthy cells into parts of the brain damaged by Parkinson’s disease with the hope of alleviating symptoms such as tremors and balance problems.
Cell replacement therapy was limited in use as transplanted tissue would take on signs of the disease from nearby cells, which this study is hoping to fight by editing the genes of the stem cells.
In the tests the researchers successfully transformed the stem cells into cells producing dopamine, a key chemical that is lost as a symptom of the disease.
The cells did not develop signs of the disease unlike those that were not gene-edited.
Although Parkinson’s disease tends to affect people over the age of 50, these advances could be most beneficial for younger patients affected by the disease and those living with aggressive forms of the condition.
Dr Simon Scott, deputy director of research for the Cure Parkinson’s Trust said: “Cell replacement therapy represents one experimental approach to regenerative medicine for people with Parkinson’s.
“This new research by Dr Tilo Kunath and his team at the University of Edinburgh provides another advancement in the development of this treatment. The Cure Parkinson’s Trust is thrilled to be associated with this inspiring and innovative research”
The UK Centre for Mammalian Synthetic Biology, pharmaceutical company UCB Biopharma and Cure Parkinson’s Trust provided funding for the research.
It was published in the European Journal of Neuroscience but the approach needs clinical testing before it can be used to treat those who suffer from Parkinson’s disease.
Why are you making commenting on The National only available to subscribers?
We know there are thousands of National readers who want to debate, argue and go back and forth in the comments section of our stories. We’ve got the most informed readers in Scotland, asking each other the big questions about the future of our country.
Unfortunately, though, these important debates are being spoiled by a vocal minority of trolls who aren’t really interested in the issues, try to derail the conversations, register under fake names, and post vile abuse.
So that’s why we’ve decided to make the ability to comment only available to our paying subscribers. That way, all the trolls who post abuse on our website will have to pay if they want to join the debate – and risk a permanent ban from the account that they subscribe with.
The conversation will go back to what it should be about – people who care passionately about the issues, but disagree constructively on what we should do about them. Let’s get that debate started!
Callum Baird, Editor of The National
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules here