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. 2012 Apr 11:6:17.
doi: 10.3389/fncel.2012.00017. eCollection 2012.

Neural stem/progenitor cells as a promising candidate for regenerative therapy of the central nervous system

Virginie Bonnamain  1 , Isabelle Neveu, Philippe Naveilhan
Affiliations

Neural stem/progenitor cells as a promising candidate for regenerative therapy of the central nervous system

Virginie Bonnamain et al. Front Cell Neurosci. .

Abstract

Neural transplantation is a promising therapeutic strategy for neurodegenerative diseases and other disorders of the central nervous system (CNS) such as Parkinson and Huntington diseases, multiple sclerosis or stroke. Although cell replacement therapy already went through clinical trials for some of these diseases using fetal human neuroblasts, several significant limitations led to the search for alternative cell sources that would be more suitable for intracerebral transplantation.Taking into account logistical and ethical issues linked to the use of tissue derived from human fetuses, and the immunologically special status of the CNS allowing the occurrence of deleterious immune reactions, neural stem/progenitor cells (NSPCs) appear to be an interesting cell source candidate. In addition to their ability for replacing cell populations lost during the pathological events, NSPCs also display surprising therapeutic effects of neuroprotection and immunomodulation. A better knowledge of the mechanisms involved in these specific characteristics will hopefully lead in the future to a successful use of NSPCs in regenerative medicine for CNS disorders.

Keywords: immune reactions; immunomodulation; regenerative medicine; stem cells; transplantation.

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Figures

FIGURE 1
FIGURE 1
Characterization of xenograft infiltration by activated immune cells. Kinetics (A). In the absence of immunosuppressive treatment, the rejection process of fetal neurons xenografted in the rat striatum involves cells from the macrophagic lineage. After a peak of microglial activation and dendritic cell infiltration in the first days post-transplantation, probably consecutive to the surgery, a latency phase is observed. Around 5 weeks post-transplantation, rejection process is initiated and strong microglial cell activation at the border but also within the graft is observed. This phenomenon is strongly correlated with a massiveT cell and dendritic cell infiltration. Immunostaining (B). Specific porcine neurofilament is revealed by NF70 antibody and allows visualization of the graft. Immune reaction is assessed by O×62 (dendritic cells), O×42 (microglial cells/macrophages), and R73 (T cells) antibodies. Scale bar: 200 μm.
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