New Zealand and Swedish neuroscientists have traced the pathway adult neural stem cells travel along to repair the human brain, opening up an exciting new field of research that could potentially lead to treatments for many brain disorders.
They have also overturned the long-held theory that although an adult stem cell pathway existed in other mammals, it was not found in humans.
The discovery is the culmination of eight years of collaborative study by teams led by Professor Richard Faull of the University of Auckland in New Zealand and Professor Peter Eriksson of the Arvid Carlsson Institute for Neuroscience, in Gothenburg, Sweden. Their findings are the cover story in the March 2nd issue of Science, considered the world?s top scientific journal.
The Foundation supports the Neurological Foundation Human Brain Bank, the source of human brain tissue for the study. New Zealand neuroscientist Dr Maurice Curtis, who is working with the Swedish team, is a recipient of the Foundation?s Philip Wrightson Fellowship, while Monica Kam, on the New Zealand team, was a Neurological Foundation Miller Scholar.
Neurological Foundation executive director Max Ritchie said the study was an outstanding accomplishment for the New Zealand neuroscientists.
?It is a prime example of what the Neurological Foundation is trying to achieve. With the ongoing fostering of emerging scientists, New Zealand is producing world-class research which will have far-reaching implications for the treatment of neurological disorders.?
?Significantly it is the support of many individual New Zealanders who contribute to the Foundation and neurological research that have helped make these breakthroughs possible,? he said.
Using a variety of techniques, including Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI), and cell staining, the researchers traced the pathway from the subventricular zone deep within the brain (where neural stem cells are created) to the olfactory bulb in the limbic system. Although this pathway had been identified in other mammals, it had never been found in humans.
Knowing how the stem cells move through the human brain means researchers can now investigate ways to direct stem cells to damaged and diseased brain regions in order to repair them.