NUMBER FIVE: EPILEPSY
Dear Friend of Stem Cell Research:
For one month, I will make available a short (2-3 paragraphs) daily piece summarizing one aspect of the stem cell research—my layman’s understanding of it—done by scientists connected to the California Institute for Regenerative Medicine (CIRM).
The material is drawn from the California Institution for Regenerative Medicine (cirm.ca.gov). For more info, look up your disease of interest there. Kevin McCormack deserves credit for most of the science writing. A cheerful overview was provided by Melissa King. Any mistakes are my own. In most cases I have left out the scientists’ names. A few I have written about in books, and those I felt free to credit directly.
There are no politics involved, other than my sincere wish for your participation.
Remember in November!
EPILEPSY: Total Grants, not available; Significant grant, $6.6 million
Epilepsy comes in many forms: from suddenly “waking up” with no recollection of having been unconscious, to violent muscular contractions, as if wrestling an invisible enemy. Imagine driving when either of these events occur. There may also be emotional problems attached, such as inexplicable depression.
Epilepsy is widespread, affecting an estimated 3.5 million people. Some individuals cannot hold a driver's license, and are ineligible for dangerous jobs.
Drugs may help, but perhaps a third find no pharmaceutical remedy. They may choose to undergo surgery, but cutting into the brain always carries risks.
A company called Neurona Therapeutics was started by a scientist, Cory Nicholas, and funded by a $6.6 million grant from CIRM. In an article by Kevin McCormack, Dr. Nicholas discusses “interneurons”, a nerve cell in the brain, (which) secretes chemical messengers… that may rebalance misfiring electrical signals in the brain.”
Another approach is being explored by Arturo Alvarez-Buylla of the University of California at San Francisco.
“The…cells we propose can inhibit hyperactive (nerve) circuits after implantation into the damaged brain…these may also providing treatment for Parkinson’s, traumatic brain injury and other neurological conditions. The (nerve cells) that normally inhibit brain circuits originate (in) part of the developing brain called the medial ganglionic eminence (MGE)… Recent studies (show) that MGE cells grafted onto an animal model of epilepsy may decrease…seizures.” (2)
For financial reasons alone, epilepsy must be fought. It costs America $12-16 billion in cold hard cash every year—surely to cure is better than to endure!
1. https://blog.CIRM.ca.gov/tag/epilepsy
2. https://cirm.ca.gov/diseases-or-translational-focus/epilepsy