Karolinska Institutet has received a grant of DKK 10 million (approximately SEK 15 million) from the Novo Nordisk Foundation for research on cell therapy for Parkinson's disease. The project is led by Johan Ericson, Professor at the Department of Cell and Molecular Biology, and aims to help move laboratory research closer to clinical application.
In Parkinson's disease, nerve cells in the brain that produce dopamine gradually die. Dopamine is a substance that is essential for controlling movement. When these cells are lost, symptoms such as tremor, stiffness and difficulties with movement arise.
In a new research project at Karolinska Institutet, Johan Ericson and his research group are working to develop methods to replace these lost cells and thereby restore the motor functions affected by the disease, rather than only slowing disease progression or alleviating symptoms.
Stem cells as a starting point
The project is based on work with pluripotent stem cells. These are cells that have the ability to develop into all the different cell types found in the body. In the laboratory, they can serve as a kind of biological raw material, but they must be guided very carefully in order to become useful.
"The challenge is not to create cells in general, but to create the right type of cell. In Parkinson's disease, it is a specific type of dopamine‑producing nerve cell that is lost," says Johan Ericson.
In the research group, carefully controlled culture conditions and signalling molecules are used to mimic the biological processes that occur during embryonic development, when these dopamine cells are normally formed in the brain. The goal is to generate dopaminergic precursor cells that correspond to the cells found in the midbrain and that can later mature into fully functional nerve cells.
A long-term effort with a focus on quality
An important part of the project is to produce high‑quality cells that, after transplantation, give rise to a high proportion of functional dopamine cells. This has long been a challenge in the field, as previous studies have often shown that only a small fraction of the transplanted cells develop into dopamine cells. Instead, the majority of the cells differentiate into other, unwanted cell types. This reduces the effectiveness of the treatment and can, in some cases, also involve risks.
"Our preclinical studies look very promising. The vast majority of the cells develop into functional dopamine‑producing nerve cells that rapidly restore motor function after transplantation in an animal model of Parkinson's disease. With the support we have received from the Novo Nordisk Foundation, we hope to be able to take the final steps towards clinical trials in humans," says Johan Ericson.
Funding
The grant of DKK 10 million comes from the Novo Nordisk Foundation's Regenerative Medicine Catalyst Grants programme, which supports applied and translational research in regenerative medicine.
The research is conducted at Karolinska Institutet. The project is funded by the Novo Nordisk Foundation. There are no reported conflicts of interest.
