美國研究人員日前報告說,，他們進行的動物研究顯示，神經(jīng)干細胞有望幫助腦瘤患者修復(fù)受損的認知功能,。
美國加利福尼亞大學(xué)歐文分校的研究人員培育出患腦瘤的實驗鼠,，并對它們的腦部進行放療，實驗鼠的認知能力因而受到損傷,。放療兩天后,，研究人員向它們的腦部植入人類神經(jīng)干細胞,，在隨后1個月及4個月的評估中，這批實驗鼠的認知能力都得到改善,，而未接受移植的對照組實驗鼠,，其受損認知能力未發(fā)生變化。
研究人員發(fā)現(xiàn),，移植10萬個神經(jīng)干細胞就足以提高實驗鼠的認知能力,。移植后存活的神經(jīng)干細胞中有15％轉(zhuǎn)化為新的神經(jīng)細胞，另有45％轉(zhuǎn)化為星形膠質(zhì)細胞和少突細胞,。星形膠質(zhì)細胞是腦內(nèi)神經(jīng)膠質(zhì)細胞的一種,，這類細胞有保護神經(jīng)細胞并將血液中的養(yǎng)分提供給神經(jīng)細胞的作用。少突細胞是一種神經(jīng)膠質(zhì)細胞,，它負責(zé)制造一種稱為髓磷脂的物質(zhì),，形成包裹神經(jīng)細胞的髓鞘。
這項研究成果已發(fā)表在美國學(xué)術(shù)刊物《癌癥研究》上,。領(lǐng)導(dǎo)該研究的放射腫瘤學(xué)教授查爾斯·利莫利說,，上述發(fā)現(xiàn)提供的證據(jù)表明，神經(jīng)干細胞可以用來逆轉(zhuǎn)大腦中健康組織因放療受到的損傷,。(生物谷 Bioon.com)
生物谷推薦原文出處：
Cancer Rresearch doi: 10.1158/0008-5472.CAN-11-0027
Human Neural Stem Cell Transplantation Ameliorates Radiation-Induced Cognitive Dysfunction
Munjal M. Acharya, Lori-Ann Christie, Mary L. Lan, Erich Giedzinski, John R. Fike, Susanna Rosi, and Charles L. Limoli
Cranial radiotherapy induces progressive and debilitating declines in cognition that may, in part, be caused by the depletion of neural stem cells. The potential of using stem cell replacement as a strategy to combat radiation-induced cognitive decline was addressed by irradiating athymic nude rats followed 2 days later by intrahippocampal transplantation with human neural stem cells (hNSC). Measures of cognitive performance, hNSC survival, and phenotypic fate were assessed at 1 and 4 months after irradiation. Irradiated animals engrafted with hNSCs showed significantly less decline in cognitive function than irradiated, sham-engrafted animals and acted indistinguishably from unirradiated controls. Unbiased stereology revealed that 23% and 12% of the engrafted cells survived 1 and 4 months after transplantation, respectively. Engrafted cells migrated extensively, differentiated along glial and neuronal lineages, and expressed the activity-regulated cytoskeleton-associated protein (Arc), suggesting their capability to functionally integrate into the hippocampus. These data show that hNSCs afford a promising strategy for functionally restoring cognition in irradiated animals. Cancer Res; 71(14); 4834–45. ?2011 AACR.
