Neural Stem Cells Can Become Dopamine-Making Brain Cells In Laboratory

韩雪娜

日期: 2002-11-07 今日/总浏览: 1/791
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BiologistsatJeffersonMedicalCollegehaveshownforthefirsttimeinthelaboratorythattheycanconvertsomehumanneuralstemcellstobraincellsthatcanproducedopamine,thebrainchemicalmissinginParkinson'sdisease.Iftheresearcherscanbetterunderstandtheprocessandharnessthisability,theworkmaysomedayleadtonewstrategiesintreatingneurodegenerativediseasessuchasParkinson's.
( G; ?/ @# E: {4 ]DevelopmentalbiologistLorraineIacovitti,Ph.D.,professorofneurologyatJeffersonMedicalCollegeofThomasJeffersonUniversityinPhiladelphia,issearchingforwaystoconvertstemcellsintodopamine-makingneuronstoreplacethoselostinParkinson's.Inpreviouswork,sheandherco-workersshowedthatmouseneuralstemcellsplacedinratswithParkinson'sdiseasecoulddevelopintobraincellsthatproducedtyrosinehydroxylase(TH),theenzymeneededtomakedopamine.
/ ^7 c  {* R; g( PDr.Iacovitti,whoalsoisassociatedirectoroftheFarberInstituteforNeurosciencesatJefferson,wantedtoseeifhumanneuralstemcellscouldbecomedopamine-producingbraincellsaswell.Sheandhercolleaguesgrewneuralstemcellsinalaboratorydish.Usingacocktailofproteingrowthfactorsandnutrients,theresearchersfoundtheycouldcoaxapproximately25percentofthestemcellstomakeTHinthedish,provingthestemcellshadthecapacitytomanufacturedopamine.What'smore,whentheyremovedthegrowthfactor-cocktail,thecellscontinuedtoproducetheenzyme.Shereportsherteam'sfindingsNovember5attheannualmeetingoftheSocietyforNeuroscienceinOrlando.' h9 j& W  ]1 |1 ~( I: {
Wehavetwoexamplesofhumanstemcellsthatdothis,shesays.Theobviousextension[oftheseresults]istotakethosepredifferentiatedhumandopamineneuronsandtransplantthenintoParkinson'sdiseasemodelsystems.
) e1 P2 H; B) ]Butfirst,Dr.Iacovittiwouldliketopurifytheseneurons.Hergrouphasdevelopedwaysoftagginglivedopamineneuronswithafluorescentmarker,shesays,enablingusforthefirsttimetopurifyorenrichthenumberofdopaminergicneuronsandtransplantthemintoParkinsoniananimalmodels.
& v5 F/ \) u: T3 \Ultimately,shesays,theyhopetoonedaybeabletodevelopthisasatreatmentforParkinson'sdiseaseinpeople.# C+ D, d, _, K/ ?

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4 v7 q0 E+ p! @  @作者:
0 I' j, C- s  ]4 D! l+ |+ Q  E0 Q来源: ScienceDaily Magazine
% R0 H5 p0 M, k发布者: 刘斌