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Angelo Luigi Vescovi and Gianvito Martino answers a
few questions about this month's fast breaking paper in the field of
Neuroscience & Behavior.
From
•>>June 2004
Field:
Neuroscience & Behavior
Article Title: Injection of adult neurospheres induces recovery in a chronic model of multiple sclerosis
Authors: Pluchino, S;Quattrini, A;Brambilla, E;Gritti, A;Salani, G;Dina, G;Galli, R;Del Carro, U;Amadio, S;Bergami, A;Furlan, R;Comi,
G;Vescovi,
AL;Martino, G
Journal: NATURE
Volume: 422
Page: 688-694
Year: APR 17 2003
* Hosp San Raffaele, DIBIT, Neuroimmunol Unit, Via Olgettina 58, I-20132 Milan, Italy.
* Hosp San Raffaele, DIBIT, Neuroimmunol Unit, I-20132 Milan, Italy.
* Hosp San Raffaele, Stem Cell Res Inst, I-20132 Milan, Italy.
* Hosp San Raffaele, Dept Neurol & Neurophysiol, I-20132 Milan, Italy.
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| This paper has
also been named the New Hot Paper in Neuroscience
& Behavior for
July
2004.
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 Why
do you think your paper is highly cited?
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“The overall message of the work is that adult neural stem cells repair multifocal brain damage caused by inflammation once systemically injected rather than transplanted directly at the site of injury.” |
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Our paper is the first to describe the capability of neural
stem cells to promote myelin repair once injected either
intravenously or intrathecally in a mouse-model of multiple
sclerosis, which is an acquired disease of the myelin affecting
young adults worldwide and which has enormous economical and
social costs. The novelty of our work is that we have been able
to discover and detail the mechanism by which these cells
selectively reach damaged areas of the brain and, once there,
repair the tissue. This is the first demonstration that adult
neural stem cells constitutively possess the capabilities to
sense damage signals (e.g. inflammation), to selectively reach
to areas of the brain and spinal cord where inflammation is
taking place, and to produce in situ trophic factors to
promote neuroprotection as well as differentiating into myelin
forming cells, establishing a program of myelin re-ensheathing.
Most importantly, our work shows that it is feasible to tackle
neurodegeneration even when this occurs in a widespread fashion.
Does
it describe a new discovery or a new methodology that's useful to
others?
The overall message of the work is that adult neural stem
cells repair multifocal brain damage caused by inflammation once
systemically injected rather than transplanted directly at the
site of injury. In principle this approach would be applicable
to many pathological conditions in the brain, which opens new
therapeutic perspectives in other multifocal diseases of the
central nervous system.
Could
you summarize the significance of your paper in layman's terms?
In mice with experimental multiple sclerosis the intravenous
injection of adult neural stem cells can restore neurological
function lost to the disease. The functional impairment caused
by inflammatory demyelination and neuronal damage was almost
abolished—both clinically and neurophysiologically—soon
after intravenous injection of adult syngenic neural stem cells.
This was due to the extraordinary capability of neural stem
cells to selectively reach damaged CNS areas, to release in
situ neuroprotective factors and to differentiate into
myelin-forming cells. Our work opens new perspectives in the
field of regenerative medicine in humans since it shows that
"neuroprotection" can be easily obtained by injecting
neural stem cells intravenously and it’s a major step forward
in the treatment of MS in particular and of neurodegenerative
diseases in general.
How
did you become involved in this research?
Gianvito Martino:
My research during the last 10 years has been mainly aimed at
identifying the molecular and cellular mechanisms sustaining the
immune-mediated pathological processes, causing inflammation and
degeneration of central nervous system (CNS), in order to develop
new therapeutic strategies for still not curable neurological
disorders such as multiple sclerosis (MS). This methodological
approach has resulted— after a 10-year effort—in the
development of very promising gene and stem cell-based therapeutic
strategies able, while still in an experimental setting, to
efficaciously repair myelin damage and protect neuronal integrity.
Angelo Vescovi:
For the last 13 years I have been focusing my activity on studying
the basic aspects of neural stem cells physiology. In 1999, we
established a methodology that allows for the establishment of
human neural stem cell lines and then went on to define the
properties of these cells in terms of their developmental
potential, differentiation, and engraftment into the damaged CNS.
In this collaboration with the group of G. Martino, we built on
our knowledge of this novel cell system and eventually established
the paradigm by which the inherent therapeutic potential of neural
stem cells can be proficiently harnessed in multiple sclerosis.
Gianvito Martino M.D.
Head, Neuroimmunology Unit
Dept. of Neuroscience
DIBIT, San Raffaele Hospital
Milan, Italy
Angelo Luigi Vescovi
Co-Director, "Institute for Stem Cell Research"
DIBIT HSR
Milan, Italy
and
Professor of Cell Biology
Dept. Biological Sciences and Biotechnology
University of Milan Bicocca
Milan, Italy
Read comments from Angelo Luigi Vescovi
in New Hot Papers from the month of September
2002.
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ESI Special Topics,
June 2004
Citing URL - http://www.esi-topics.com/fbp/2004/june04-Vescovi_Martino.html
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