Stem-cell pioneer takes aim at M.S

The decades-long dream of treating debilitating injury and illness with stem cells is quickly becoming reality.

The world’s first test on patients of a treatment using human embryonic stem cells has cleared a year of safety trials with no adverse effects, according to Geron Corp.

Meanwhile, a second clinical trial of another stem-cell treatment has begun in Switzerland.

Both treatments target spinal cord injuries, and both were developed by scientists at UC Irvine.

Stem cells have the potential to develop into a variety of cell types within the body. Some are derived from embryos, stirring controversy, but their promise is undeniable: allowing the paralyzed to walk, or reversing degenerative diseases such as Alzheimer’s or multiple sclerosis.

Hans Keirstead, whose treatment for acute spinal cord injuries became the world’s first clinical trial using human embryonic stem cells, is pushing ahead to develop new treatments, and to increase the number of people who could be helped by those already being tested.

A. I’m doing a lot of work in order to expand the patient population that might benefit from the treatment. I recently published a paper (about using) the treatment around the neck. Before we showed only that it worked down near the stomach, the thoracic region. We have to show that it works in rats before the FDA will allow us to go into humans. I published a paper showing it works just as well in the cervical (neck) region, as in the thoracic. I’m pretty happy about that.

A. I’m working on two new projects, and I’m really excited about them. Both are on chronic (long term) spinal-cord injuries. One involves getting rid of the scar that forms after an injury. If you get rid of the scar, that would make an old injury a young injury again. Therefore, you could apply all these new technologies that are emerging to treat acute (short term) spinal cord injury.