Eureka! Age-long neurological disorders have finally met their
match. University at Buffalo researchers, led by Michal Stachowiak, Ph.D.,
director of the Molecular and Structural Neurobiology and Gene Therapy, have
identified a new mechanism that plays a central role in adult brain stem cell
development and prompts brain stem cells to differentiate into neurons.
The research team set out to see if it is possible to generate a
wave of new neurons from stem cells and direct them to the affected areas using
a mouse model. Their discovery, known as Integrative FGFR1 Signaling (INFS),
has fundamentally challenged the prevailing ideas of how signals are processed
in cells during neuronal development. So what exactly does this mean?
In essence, the INFS mechanism is considered capable of
repopulating degenerated brain areas. This increases the possibility for new
treatments for brain injuries, Parkinson’s disease, Alzheimer’s disease and
other neurodegenerative disorders which result from an extensive loss of neurons,
accompanied by functional deterioration in the affected brain tissue. Such
neurodegenerative diseases are a major health concern, given the rising aging
population worldwide.
The approach uses gene engineering and nanoparticles for gene
delivery to activate the INFS mechanism directly and promote neuronal
development. The INFS-targeting gene can prompt these stem cells to
differentiate into neurons to replenish dead cells.
“In this way, targeting the INFS potentially could be used
to cure certain brain diseases, particularly in the case of a stroke or
injuries that happen as a single episode and are not continuously attacking the
brain,” said Dr. Stachowiak. “This study provides proof of concept
for a novel approach to the treatment of neuronal loss by means of therapeutic
gene transfer. This is a particularly attractive alternative to viral-mediated
gene transfer.
Stachowiak and his wife, Ewa K. Stachowiak, Ph.D., research
assistant professor of pathology and anatomical sciences, along with their
postdoctoral fellows and graduate students, have spent more than 15 years
studying the mechanisms that control natural neurogenesis, the creation of new
neurons.
Stachowiak and colleagues are currently working on approaches
for further development of gene delivery methods for the treatment of neuronal
loss. “Now that we know the mechanism, we can search effectively for the
means to control it,” said Ewa Stachowiak.
Results
of the research appear in a recent issue of Integrative Biology.