Can Brain Damage be Reversed with Stem Cells?

Cerebral palsy is a disorder that affects many kids and is often brought on by birth injury or brain damage. Accidents, whether they could have been avoided or not, can harm the developing fetal brain or a newborn's brain due to a lack of oxygen. Depending on the case, the outcomes can range from little discomfort and problems with mobility to severe impairment and permanent dependency.

Improved treatments, earlier diagnosis, and suitable interventions are required to control cerebral palsy and lessen symptoms. The use of stem cell treatment to repair and restore damaged brain tissue in infants may now be possible, according to researchers, who believe they have found a method.

Hypoxic-ischemic cerebral injury

Researchers at Sanford Burnham Prebys Medical Discovery Institute and Loma Linda University have examined the potential for stem cell therapy in newborns who have suffered hypoxic-ischemic brain injuries, or HIIs.

HII can happen before, during, or after delivery. This shortage of oxygen may be brought on by a variety of factors, including maternal health, umbilical cord strangulation, and negligent use of forceps by a doctor.

A child may experience cerebral palsy as a result of their injury, depending on its severity. Again, depending on the HII damage, symptoms may be minor, moderate, or severe. The impairment gets worse the longer the baby is without oxygen.

Determining Who Will Benefit from Stem Cell Therapy

Any type of cell in the body can be formed from stem cells. Stem cells have the potential to heal a variety of illnesses, including brain injury, because of their capacity to alter. The concept behind the cells is that they can be utilized to repair damaged cells and safeguard healthy cells.

The most promising patients for stem cell therapy for newborns with HII are now being identified using a novel methodology. In order to assess brain tissue and determine the regions of the brain where the therapy would be most successful, the researchers used lab animal models and MRI (magnetic resonance imaging). If this model is successful, the researchers may be able to increase the efficacy of clinical trials for infants with brain damage. Additionally, it might stop patients from receiving therapies that aren't necessary and aren't likely to be successful.

The study's findings have shown promise. They discovered that MRI scans of lab rats with brain damage revealed areas with entirely dead cells and a ring of damaged cells. Treatments with stem cells were significantly more effective in people with a broader ring of injured cells and a smaller core of dead cells.

Exosome Therapy: A new hope

Exosomes produced by mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) have recently demonstrated great potential for the treatment of neurological illnesses, with some findings emphasising the neuroprotective benefits of neurogenesis and angiogenesis following traumatic brain injury (TBI), cerebral palsy and other diseases.

Living with CP

Researchers are discovering that the data from MRI scans can be used to choose infants who should get stem cell therapy for cerebral palsy to safeguard vulnerable brain tissue and decrease or halt the onset of brain damage. This might prevent diseases like cerebral palsy or at the very least lessen their severity in terms of symptoms and effects.

Cerebral palsy causes symptoms and limitations that last a lifetime. Although currently, stem cells are not being used as a mainstream treatment for the disease, continuous research such as this study might assist to improve existing treatments.

Reference:

Fatemi A, Wilson MA, Johnston MV. Hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy in the term infant. Clin Perinatol. 2009 Dec;36(4):835-58, vii. doi: 10.1016/j.clp.2009.07.011. PMID: 19944838; PMCID: PMC2849741.