This week, Bobbi Conner talks with Dr. Vanessa Hinson about research underway to explore the use of stem cell therapy for individuals with Parkinson’s disease. Dr. Hinson is a Professor of Neurology and Director of the Parkinson’s Center of Excellence at MUSC.
TRANSCRIPT:
Conner: I'm Bobbi Conner for South Carolina Public Radio with Health Focus here at the radio studio for the Medical University of South Carolina in Charleston. Research is underway in South Carolina and throughout the world to explore the use of stem cells to create new therapies that could one day alleviate the symptoms of Parkinson's disease. Doctor Vanessa Hinson is here to talk about this research. Doctor Hinson is a Professor of Neurology, and she's Director of the Parkinson's Center of Excellence at MUSC. Doctor Hinson, tell us about this concept of using stem cell therapy for Parkinson's disease.
Dr. Hinson: This basic concept really makes a lot of sense for Parkinson's disease. Parkinson's disease is primarily caused by the loss of dopamine producing neurons in the brain. And because we precisely know what type of cell has been lost, it makes sense to think about using stem cells to replenish them.
Conner: What advances have been made in the field of stem cell therapy that have set the stage for considering this therapy for Parkinson's?
Dr. Hinson: There are really two big breakthroughs that have made this possible. Number one is how to get to these stem cells to begin with. And there's two novel ways. One would be using the person's own cells. So, for example, skin cells and reprogram them which is now possible, to become infant cells that then in the lab can be programed to become dopamine cells and be implanted into the Parkinson's patient's brain. And number two would be to harvest a set of embryonic stem cells from early- stage embryos and again program them, teach them to become dopamine neurons that Parkinson's patients need.
Conner: Well, give us an overview of the research that's currently underway related to stem cell therapy and Parkinson's.
Dr. Hinson: Just recently, we received the results of two smaller trials in about 20 people with Parkinson's that showed that stem cells could be successfully implanted into their brains. And people actually improved. Their movements got better. And that gave us a lot of hope to get this to the next level. So MUSC is one of the centers engaged in what we call a phase three clinical trial, where about 100 people will be implanted with embryonic stem cells for Parkinson's disease. And we will monitor these people for a long time, for about five years, to make sure that their movements improve, but also to look for safety. We want to make sure the cells don't get rejected, and that they stay alive over the duration of the trial.
Conner: What are the challenges or limitations right now related to stem cell therapy for Parkinson's?
Dr. Hinson: So, the first thing we need to clarify is that these treatments are not FDA approved. This is all research that we're talking about. And the research is so important because there are challenges that have to be worked out. So, first of all, we need to make sure these new dopamine cells, from stem cells, don't get rejected by our own immune system, which looks at these as foreign objects and might be overactive and reject them over time. So, we want to make sure that does not happen. We also want to monitor, as scientists, that these cells indeed follow their script or destiny and really develop into dopamine cells and nothing else. We need to make sure they don't get out of control and develop into a brain tumor or some type of other growth. Those are all safety factors that really ask us to do very rigorous clinical trials and follow people over years to make sure that the cells do what they intend to do, but don't cause unwarranted side effects.
Conner: Doctor Hinson, thanks for talking with us about this Parkinson's research.
Dr. Hinson: You're welcome.
Conner: From the radio studio for the Medical University of South Carolina in Charleston, I'm Bobbi Conner for South Carolina Public Radio.
Health Focus transcripts are intended to accurately represent the original audio version of the program; however, some discrepancies or inaccuracies may exist. The audio format serves as the official record of Health Focus programming.
