Neural stem cells transplanted into a mouse brain
Photo by Yirui Sun at Wellcome images

Published last week in the Journal of Neuroscience, researchers at the University of California, Irvine, demonstrated that memory in brain-damaged mice could be improved by stem cell transplantation. Project leader, Dr. Mathew Blurton-Jones transplanted neural stem cells into the hippocampus of a transgenic mouse model where brain damage was limited to the hippocampus, an area responsible for spatial memory. Three months after the transplantation, memory was improved as the brain-damaged mice performed just as well as the healthy mice.

Stem cells have been demonstrated to restore motor function in spinal-cord injured animals and even restore vision in blind mice (see past blog). However, cognition is a much more complex process involving multiple brain networks, so it has been difficult to determine the exact mechanism. However, preliminary investigations indicate that the transplanted stem cells did not merely replace the dead hippocampal cells but prevented the living cells from dying as well. For instance, there was a reduction in the rate of neuronal cell loss and an increase in synaptic connections in the treated mice.

“It’s a nice piece of work,” says Jack Price, professor of developmental neurobiology and director of the Centre for the Cellular Basis of Behaviour at King’s College London, who was not involved in the research. “The challenge now is to go from those animal models into the clinic.”

It’s an exciting step in stem cell research as more complex, multivariate physiological networks such as those involved in cognition are able to be modulated. At a minimum, this work will help prevent neuronal loss in other neurodegenerative disorders such as stroke, traumatic brain injury and Alzheimer’s disease. I know what you’re thinking: Anybody got a syringe of stem cells handy before my next exam? You wish.

Read more: Neural Stem Cells Improve Memory in an Inducible Mouse Model of Neuronal Loss

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