Intramedullary spinal cord implantation of human CD34+ umbilical cord-derived cells in ALS

Abstract

Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is a devastating neurodegenerative disorder with marginal therapeutic options. Degeneration of motor neurons in the primary motor cortex, brainstem and spinal cord lead to rapidly progressive paralysis and finally to death due to respiratory failure. As pharmacological therapies have failed to provide sufficient neuroprotective effects in ALS, transplantation of stem or progenitor cells is considered a promising treatment strategy. Cell transplantation approaches in ALS mainly aim to generate a neuroprotective environment for degenerating motor neurons by transplantation of non-neuronal cells, rather than to replace lost motor neurons. We present a 63-year-old male patient suffering from ALS who underwent intramedullary thoracic spinal cord implantation of human CD34(+) umbilical cord-derived haematopoietic progenitor cells with a three-year follow up after transplantation.