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Bone Marrow Stromal Cells ... Sizing up strokes: New drugs, diagnosis and treatment techniques give patients a better chance of recovery March 30, 2004 BY PATRICIA ANSTETT FREE PRESS MEDICAL WRITER <<SNIP>> SCROLL WAY DOWN... Look for Bone Marrow Stromal Cells... The studies work on the theory that the brain stimulates different proteins after a stroke, brain injury or neurodegenerative diseases. It's aprotective reaction and response to inflammation,explains Michael Chopp, PhD, scientific director of the Ford Neuroscience Institute. That starts a new cycle of growth: new blood vessels, brain cells and connections between brain cells, or synapses, Chopp says. Advanced types of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scans, a special area of research at Ford, show that the compounds in mice "target vasculature that has been injured," Chopp says. On the MRI scans, the injured areas look like one type of cloud and the healthier areas capable of growth appear like a different type of cloud. Chopp found that when he injected stromal bone marrow cells intravenously they "moved to the region outside the boundary of dead brain tissue and turned on the brain." The process is known to scientists as brain remodeling. These stromal cells, obtained from blood donors, may hold promise for treatment of Parkinson's disease, multiple sclerosis and spinal cord injuries, Chopp says. No human studies have begun, though Chopp hopes to get federal and institutional approval to begin some soon. SOURCE: Detroit Free Press, United States http://www.freep.com/news/health/stroke30_20040330.htm * * * ---------------------------------------------------------------------- To sign-off Parkinsn send a message to: mailto:[log in to unmask] In the body of the message put: signoff parkinsn