Stem Cell-Based Therapies for Parkinson’s Disease

Recent news of an impending clinical cell transplantation trial in Parkinson’s disease using parthenogenetic stem cells as a source of donor tissue have raised hopes in the patient community and sparked discussion in the research community. Based on discussions held by a global collaborative initiative on translation of stem cell therapy in Parkinson’s disease, we have identified a set of key questions that we believe should be addressed ahead of every clinical stem cell-based transplantation trial in this disorder. In this article, we first provide a short history of cell therapy in Parkinson’s disease and briefly describe the current state-of-art regarding human stem cell-derived dopamine neurons for use in any patient trial. With this background information as a foundation, we then discuss each of the key questions in relation to the upcoming therapeutic trial and critically assess if the time is ripe for clinical translation of parthenogenetic stem cell technology in Parkinson’s disease. Stem cell-based therapies for Parkinson’s disease (PD) are rapidly moving towards clinical trials. Several academic and industry efforts are well under way to produce dopaminergic neurons from stem cells under conditions compliant with use in patients. In December 2015, a press release announced a Phase I/IIa trial in PD using a parthenogenetic stem cell source, resulting in widespread excitement about stem cell therapy for PD in traditional print media, social media and especially in the PD patient community