Dementias affect a large number of Australians each year with the number of patients expected to triple by 2050. As such, there is need to develop a better model of this debilitating disorder to provide improved treatments. Mesenchymal stem cells, are relatively easy to obtain and grow, and are able to produce the key cell types in the brain. We can use these cells to identify the processes that control the production of brain cells, which will likely provide better treatment of this disease.
Using Stem Cells And Bioengineered Scaffolds To Promote Regeneration Following Necrotic Brain Injury
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$710,857.00
Summary
A number of injuries, including stroke, result in tissue loss. Consequently promoting repair will require restoration of tissue structure, replacement cells and a supportive environment to promote integration of these new cells. This study will engineer and develop novel scaffolds that can replace tissue whilst additionally providing physical and chemical support for newly implanted stem cells. This work will be conducted in an animal model of stroke.
Standardising Protocols For The Differentiation And Integration Of Human Pluripotent Stem Cell-derived Neural Transplants In Parkinson's Disease
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$987,664.00
Summary
Clinical trials have shown that transplanting dopamine neurons (specific nerve cells) into the brain of Parkinson’s disease patients can improve symptoms. Trials use fetal tissue for implantation, which is unsustainable and highly variable. This proposal will examine stem cells as an alternative. We will establish a reliable protocol to instruct human stem cells to become dopamine neurons, develop methods to select these cells and, examine the integration of these transplanted cells in the brain
Pre-Clinical Studies Towards Cell-Based Approaches For Cortical Repair.
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$739,901.00
Summary
This project seeks to determine whether brain cells that die after stroke can be functionally replaced using cells grown in the laboratory from human stem cells. Current therapies for stroke aim to limit the damage but do not allow for actual recovery of brain function. By growing turning stem cells into specialised cells that match the ones lost after stroke, this project aims to restore motor function by transplanting these cells into the injured brain.
This proposal seeks to determine the therapeutic potential of stem cells for the treatment of brain injury early in life, for example as occurs in cerebral palsy. The project will test the capacity of implanted stem cells to both protect the brain and also to functionally replace cells lost to the injury in order to improve motor and cognitive function.
Pre-clinical Steps Towards A Stem Cell Therapy For Parkinson's Disease.
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$1,179,594.00
Summary
A promising experimental therapy for Parkinson's disease is the use of stem cells that in order to replace the cells lost during the disease process. A challenge for this approach is that upon transplantation into the brain, in addition to the therapeutic cell types, there will also be unwanted cell types such as those that can form tumours. This proposal seeks to establish a novel strategy for removing those cells prior to transplantation.
The Development Of Glial Cells In The Sympathetic Nervous System
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$372,025.00
Summary
Nervous system development entails the co-ordinated multiplication of a small number of founder cells to give the millions of cells of the mature nervous system. Each founder generates a many different cell types. Understanding how this is controlled is among the most challenging problems in modern biology. We will show how the development of the two basic cell types (neurons and glia), is controlled in a part of the nervous system that is relatively simple and accessible for manipulation.