US: Scientists have used injections of human stem cells to heal spinal injuries in paralysed mice, allowing them to walk normally.
The research, which was funded by the Christopher Reeve Paralysis Foundation, suggests stem cells could be used to repair spinal damage in people who have suffered damaging accidents or disease, although further studies, including safety tests, are needed before the treatment can go forward for human trials.
Neuroscientist Aileen Anderson and her team at the Reeve-Irvine Research Centre at the University of California, Irvine, used stem cells taken from the neural tissue of aborted foetuses. The researchers simulated common spinal cord injuries in mice by bruising their backbones at a specific point.
Half of the 68 mice were then injected with about 75,000 stem cells. The stem cells formed new neurons and coatings that allow the nerves to send signals properly.