ABSTRACT
Cell therapy offers the possibility of restoring the degenerated nigrostriatal pathway and thereby improving the symptoms of Parkinson’s disease (PD) (1,2). Neural stem cells have the potential to provide a limitless source of cells for this purpose, eliminating the need for human fetal cells with its associated supply limitations and ethical concerns. However, mixed results in two prospective, randomized, sham-controlled trials of fetal cell replacement in advanced PD patients have tempered the enthusiasm for cell therapy and mitigated the need for such an unlimited supply of cells (3,4). Yet neural stem cells may offer several advantages over human fetal cells. This chapter will address some fundamental aspects of stem cell biology that pertain to their use in neural restorative approaches and review the progress in generating dopaminergic (DA) neurons in vitro and the results of cell replacement in animal models of PD. Finally, other possible roles for stem cells in neural restoration will be discussed.
