The potential of alternate sources of cells for neural grafting in Parkinson's and Huntington's disease

Abstract

Cell-based therapies for Parkinson's and Huntington's disease have provided mixed clinical outcomes and one of the reasons underlying this is the use of primary fetal tissue as the source of grafted cells. An alternate source of cells, such as stem cells, could overcome many of the issues associated with primary fetal tissue and would help bring forward cell replacement therapy as a reliable and effective treatment for these two neurodegenerative disorders. This review will discuss which stem cells are likely to go to clinic in the next generation of cells, based on trials for Parkinson's and Huntington's disease.

Keywords: Huntington's disease; Parkinson's disease; cell therapy; embryonic stem cells; fetal human tissue; induced neurons; induced pluripotent stem cells.