Current developments in cell- and biomaterial-based approaches for stroke repair

Abstract

Introduction: Stroke is one of the most devastating diseases and a leading cause of mortality worldwide. So far, clinical management of stroke involves surgical clot retrieval or thrombolytic treatment inducing reperfusion of the occluded vessels in the cerebral infarcted area, which is dependent on early intervention following insult. New treatment strategies involve the promotion of angiogenesis and neuroplasticity, stimulation of endogenous neurogenesis, remyelinization, and immunomodulation by means of cell transplantation and sustained drug delivery.

Areas covered: This review describes different types of stem cells (endogenous and exogenous neural progenitors, pluripotent stem cell derivatives, mesenchymal stem cells [MSCs], olfactory ensheathing cells) and biomaterials, their routes of administration, means of noninvasive imaging, and the prerequisites and hurdles for the successful translation of the cell therapies to the clinic.

Expert opinion: Neural precursors (NPs) derived from pluripotent stem cells, unlike MSCs, can not only remodel the CNS by promoting neuroplasticity, angiogenesis, and immunomodulation, but also replace damaged cells. To transfer NPs into the clinic, step by step guidelines for researchers are identified and discussed.

Keywords:

• clinical trials
• ischemic lesion
• mesenchymal stem cells
• neural progenitors
• neurogenesis
• noninvasive imaging
• stem cells
• stroke
• translation

Declaration of interest

The study was supported from the Norwegian Financial Mechanism 2009–2014 and the Ministry of Education, Youth and Sports under Project Contract no. MSMT-28477/2014, project 7F14057. The authors have no other relevant affiliations or financial involvement with any organization or entity with a financial interest in or financial conflict with the subject matter or materials discussed in the manuscript. This includes employment, consultancies, honoraria, stock ownership or options, expert testimony, grants or patents received or pending, or royalties.

Notes

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