Treating Parkinson’s Disease with Umbilical Cord-Derived Mesenchymal Stem Cells

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Parkinson's disease is a type of degenerative disorder that affects the central nervous system of patients. This condition often impairs the sufferer's speech and motor skills. This disorder greatly impacts of person’s ability to control their movement and can be incredibly debilitating for those who suffer from it.

This progressive disorder is generally caused by the degeneration of nerve cells located in the substantia nigra of the brain. As the nerve cells die off due to degeneration or become impaired, they lose their ability to produce dopamine, which is critically important when it comes to coordinating the nerves and muscle cells that are involved in the movement of the human body. A major disruption can result in rigidity, tremors, and other movement problems.

How Many People Have Parkinson’s Disease?

Statistics show that nearly 500,000 Americans have been diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease. Given the fact that many patients go undiagnosed or are misdiagnosed by their doctors, some experts believe that this condition impacts nearly 1 million Americans. Nearly 90,000 people in the country are diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease annually. The total number of cases is expected to rise to around 1.2 million people in the country by the year 2030. Globally, more than 10 million people are diagnosed and living with Parkinson’s disease.

Although the chances of being diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease increase with age, roughly 4% of patients are diagnosed with the condition before they reach the age of 50. Men are more than 1.5 times more likely to be diagnosed with this degenerative condition than women.

What are the Symptoms of Parkinson’s Disease?

People who live with Parkinson’s disease generally experience four main symptoms. These include:

Muscle stiffness, which can be widespread. The stiffness can last for a long time.
Tremors in the jaw, legs, arms, head, or hands.
Coordination and balance impairment, which can lead to falls.
Slowness in movements.

In addition, there are several other symptoms that patients often experience as a result of their condition. These include:

Problems speaking.
Difficulties chewing and swallowing.
Skin problems.
Depression and other emotional and mental changes.
Urinary problems.

The rate of progression in the symptoms that patients experience can greatly differ from patient to patient. Early symptoms are generally subtotal in nature. However, they gradually worsened over time. There are many instances where people suffering from Parkinson’s disease experience loss of smell, difficulty sleeping, and restless leg syndrome.

There are also cognitive changes that patients with this condition experience. This can include attention problems, memory loss, and difficulties planning and accomplishing tasks. Over time, Parkinson’s disease can lead to the development of dementia. Thinking and memory problems that Parkinson’s sufferers experience can affect their daily lives.

What Treatment Options are Available for Parkinson’s Disease?

There is currently no cure for Parkinson’s disease. However, there are several treatment options that are provided to patients in order to lessen the symptoms that they experience as a result of their condition. In some cases, the symptoms can be reduced dramatically through the use of various medications. In more severe cases, doctors may perform surgery in order to alleviate some of the symptoms associated with the disease.

There are several types of medications that are provided to patients who suffer from Parkinson’s disease. Some of the most commonly prescribed medications include:

Amantadine to help control involuntary movements.
Adenosine receptor antagonists to regulate the response to dopamine and generate the release of dopamine.
Nuplazid to help control hallucinations and other delusions that patients may experience
Anticholinergics to help control tremors associated with the disease.
Catechol O-methyltransferase (COMT) inhibitors to block enzymes that generally break down dopamine.
MAO B inhibitors to help prevent the breakdown of dopamine and inhibit monoamine oxidase B.
Dopamine agonists to help mimic the effects of dopamine in the brain.
Carbidopa-levodopa provent levodopa from converting to dopamine outside of the brain.
Inhaled carbidopa-levodopa
Carbidopa-levodopa infusion

When surgery is required, patients may undergo deep brain stimulation. This type of surgery implants electrodes into specific parts of the brain in order to reduce the symptoms that patients suffer from.

Unfortunately, none of these treatments can completely eliminate the disease. However, we have seen multiple studies surrounding the use of umbilical Cord derived mesenchymal stem cells for treating Parkinson’s disease.

What are Umbilical Cord Derived Mesenchymal Stem Cells?

Umbilical cord-derived mesenchymal stem cells, or UC-MSCs, are a type of adult stem cell that is obtained from the umbilical cord cells. In many cases, these cells are isolated from Wharton’s jelly in the umbilical cord. These cells are truly unique in that they have the ability to differentiate into several types of cells. These include fat cells, bone cells, and cartilage. Additionally, UC-MSCs have also been shown to have immunosuppressive properties, which makes them valuable when it comes to treating autoimmune and degenerative disorders. They also have the ability to promote tissue repair, reduce inflammation, and modulate immune response.

In recent years, we have seen scientists use this type of stem cell to treat patients who have been diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease. Some of the studies have produced promising results, which provide some hope for patients who may have been diagnosed with this condition and experience overwhelming symptoms.

Studies Surrounding the use of UC-MSCs for Treating Parkinson’s Disease

There have been several studies performed surrounding the use of umbilical Cord derived mesenchymal stem cells to treat Parkinson’s disease.

In recent years, scientists have utilized umbilical cord-derived mesenchymal stem cells in a study surrounding rodents that executed symptoms of Parkinson’s disease. This study found that the administration of UC-MSCs inhibited neural inflammation in the mice by rescuing dopaminergic neurons. Additionally, it significantly alleviated locomotor deficits in the affected mice.

Studies surrounding mice suffering from Parkinson’s disease also found that the neuroprotective effects of umbilical Cord derived mesenchymal stem cells were effective in inhibiting reactive glycolysis and neural inflammation. It also helped to facilitate motor functional recovery and modulate the neurotransmitter dopamine in the colon and the striatum, thus suppressing colic pro-inflammatory responses. These findings have been promising when it comes to the effects of umbilical cord-derived mesenchymal stem cells on the brain got access of Parkinson’s disease-affected mice.

Another study performed by a team of scientists determined that the use of UC-MSCs was effective for treating mice who have been affected by Parkinson’s disease by regulating intestinal microorganisms, which resulted in dramatic improvements in locomotor functions.

The findings of all of these studies provide positive insight when it comes to the use of stem cells in treating Parkinson’s disease. Most notably, stem cells are effective in restoring the normal function of dopamine-producing brain cells in patients who suffer from this disease. Studies have also found that the use of these stem cells dramatically helps to improve tremors, difficulties with movement, motor symptoms, and stiffness associated with Parkinson’s disease. Overall, the preclinical and clinical studies using stem cells have produced exciting benefits for the study groups. Some of the most notable include:

The reduction of inflammation and oxidative stress within the brain.
The improved motor functions and reduction of symptoms associated with the condition.
The replacement or repair of any lost or damaged dopamine-producing cells within the brain.
The improvement of the function of the immune system in UC-MSC-treated study groups with Parkinson’s disease.

Some of the most notable improvements associated with this form of treatment include:

Tremors: Findings show that stem cells may have the ability to repair or replace any lost or damaged dopamine-producing stem cells within the brain. This can dramatically help to reduce the tremors that patients suffer from.
Bradykinesia: UC-MSCs may be effective in improving the function of the dopamine rate-producing cells within the brain. This can help to improve Bradykinesia, which is the slowing of movement that affects many patients with Parkinson’s disease.
Dyskinesia: Studies find that stem cells may be effective in improving the function of the dopamine-producing cells within the brain, which can help to reduce the symptoms of dyskinesia or abnormal movements that patients with this disease experience.
Rigidity: UC-MSCs may be beneficial when it comes to reducing inflammation in the oxidative stress within the brain. This can help to reduce the rigidity that patients suffer from.
Postural instability: UC-MSCs may have the ability to improve the function of the dopamine-producing cells within the brain. This can help to reduce postural instability that patients may suffer from with Parkinson’s disease.

Some small studies surrounding the use of umbilical cord-derived mesenchymal stem cells to treat Parkinson’s disease in human subjects are currently underway. However, the trials are still ongoing, and the patients are under observation by scientists.

There has been no conclusive discovery that stem cells will completely cure patients who suffer from Parkinson’s disease. However, the findings are promising when it comes to helping reduce the symptoms that patients suffer from by repairing damaged dopamine-producing nerve cells and replacing them within the brain.

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