Tokyo: A pioneering stem cell treatment has demonstrated improved motor function in two out of four patients suffering from spinal cord injuries, according to a groundbreaking clinical study conducted by Japanese scientists.
Currently, there is a lack of effective treatments for paralysis resulting from severe spinal cord injuries, a condition affecting over 150,000 individuals in Japan alone, with 5,000 new cases emerging annually.
Researchers at Tokyo’s Keio University are conducting their study utilizing induced pluripotent stem cells (iPS) – created by reverting mature, specialized cells to a juvenile state.
These cells can then be directed to mature into various cell types, with the Keio researchers specifically using iPS-derived neural stem cells. The university announced on Friday that two patients experienced improved motor function scores following a procedure to implant over two million iPS-derived cells into their spinal cords.
After a year of monitoring, no significant adverse events were observed across all four patients, the university stated. The primary objective of the research was to evaluate the safety of the cell injection.
Public broadcaster NHK reported that one of the two patients who experienced improvement was an elderly man who sustained the injury in an accident.
