Neurological Diseases

Brain, spinal cord, and nerves are made of neurological tissue which has 3 types of cells. Neurons, astrocytes and glial cells. Neurons have the very poor capacity of regeneration as local stem cells are sparse in number. Once damaged by trauma or inflammation there is permanent disability.

Following are neurological Diseases which cannot be treated by existing modality of treatment and stem cell therapy is the only ray of hope.

  • Alzheimer disease

  • Parkinson’s Disease

  • Traumatic paraplegia and quadriplegia

  • Beckers Dystrophy

  • Motor Neurone disorders

  • Stroke

  • Duchenne Muscle Dystrophy

  • Myasthenia gravis

  • Peripheral Neuropathies

ALZHEIMER DISEASE

This is a neurodegenerative disorder caused due to accumulation of TAU proteins and AB42 proteins in the cell of neurons and extra cellular region. The main features of Alzheimer’s disease is dementia ie loss of memory and subsequently mood swings and disorientation approximately 50 million people worldwide suffer from this disease. Causes are genetic, environmental injuries to the brain, dietary habits, alcohol, diabetes and others.

Conventional treatment include drugs like tacrine, rivastigmine, galantamine, donepezil, and memantine, Though initially, patients can live independently but as the disease progresses patient has dependent living and life expectancy is 3-10 years. The social cost is high direct because of treatment and loss of productivity and caregiving.

PARKINSONS DISORDER

Approximately 7 million people suffer from tis disease annually and 1,00,000 die annually parkinson’s disease is a long-term degenerative disorder of the central nervous system that mainly affects the motor system. The symptoms generally come on slowly over time. Early in the disease, the most obvious are shaking, rigidity, slowness of movement, and difficulty with walking ( short shuffling gate).

The cause of Parkinson’s disease is generally unknown, but believed to involve both genetic and environmental factors. The motor symptoms of the disease result from the death of cells in the substantia nigra, a region of the midbrain. This results in not enough dopamine in these areas.

There is no cure for Parkinson’s disease. Initial treatment is typically with the antiparkinson medication L-DOPA (levodopa), MAO inhibitors, COMT inhibitors etc.

Stem cell therapy is a promising therapy and stem cells are harvested from adipose tissue and bone marrow and processed in high precision lab and given intrathecally and IV at 1 month interval for 3 sittings. This is being done as a day care procedure in our centre.

STROKE

Stroke or cerebrovascular accidents are because of hypertension, valvular heart lesions etc.

There can be cerebral thrombosis or rupture of blood vessels leading to sub arachnoid haemorrhages. After the attack and proper treatment patient recovers but there is always a neurological deficit in the form of hemiplegias, facial palsy, aphasia, dysarthria. These neurones don’t completely die out but becomes non functional and can be rejuvenated by stem cell treatment.

Patients are given 3 sittings at 1 month interval by intrathecal and IV route.

TRAUMATIC PARAPLEGIA

Following accidents there is fracture in spine and spinal cord is damaged and there can be crushing of cord to complete transaction of cord. Because spinal cord cannot transmit signals patient loses power in lower limb and lacks control of bladder and bowel. Because of frequent lying patient develops bed sores.

The existing modality of treatment is spine surgery, physiotherapy but recovery of neurones is very poor. Stem cell therapy helps in regenerating the damaged neurones and restoring the functions.

Patients are given 3 sittings at 1 month interval by intrathecal and IV route.

DUCHENNE MUSCULAR DYSTROPHY

This disorder is due to defective gene called as dystrophin which is the largest gene in body having 2.4 million base pairs. Once the gene is defective muscle cannot maintain the cytoskeleton and it leads to inflammation and scarring and fat deposits (pseudo bulbar hyper trophy).

The child starts losing the motor power and by the age of 10 years becomes bed ridden and ultimately dies of cardiopulmonary failure by the age of 25 years. Exon skipper drugs are extensively like morpholino and exondys. Inhibitors of myostatin are also effective, catachien in cocoa is also effective.

Stem cell therapy can only work when bone marrow tissue is combined with adipose tissue. It has to be augmented with Wharton’s jelly mesenchymal cells also. Average 10 sittings are required to prolong the disorder and some recovery.