Neural Stem Cells for Brain and Spinal Cord Repair (Contemporary Neuroscience)

Although neural stem cells (NSCs) have been successfully used in animal models of various neurodegenerative diseases and of brain and spinal cord injuries, their use in studies of nervous system dysfunction is still in its infancy. In Neural Stem Cells for Brain and Spinal Cord Repair, active neuroscientists survey NSCs as potential tools for central nervous system and spinal cord repair by explaining their clinically significant fundamental properties, manipulations, and potential therapeutic paradigms. Their discussion of the fundamental biology of NSCs illustrates the signaling pathways that regulate stem cell division and differentiation, and defines the methods of NSC expansion and propagation, neuromorphogenesis, the factors determining cell fate both in vitro and in situ, and the induction of self-reparative processes within the brain. They also present strategies that may lead to fruitful clinical applications in the near future. These range from the replacement of degenerated, dysfunctional, or maldeveloped cells to the provision of factors (either produced intrinsically by the cells or induced to do so following genetic engineering) that may protect, correct, recruit, promote self-repair, or mediate the connectivity of host cells. Comprehensive and up-to-date, Neural Stem Cells for Brain and Spinal Cord Repair provides the first systematic overview of the biological properties and functional characteristics of NSCs, as well as outlining of several possible areas of medicine and therapy where these cells may soon prove extremely helpful. Front Matter....Pages i-xix Front Matter....Pages 1-1 Sources of Cells for CNS Therapy....Pages 3-44 Neural Stem Cells and Their Plasticity....Pages 45-68 Identification, Selection, and Use of Adult Human Oligodendrocyte Progenitor Cells....Pages 69-88 Generation, Characterization, and Transplantation of Immortalized Human Neural Crest Stem Cells....Pages 89-106 The Search for Neural Progenitors in Bone Marrow and Umbilical Cord Blood....Pages 107-131 Front Matter....Pages 133-133 Signal Transduction Pathways That Regulate Neural Stem Cell Division and Differentiation....Pages 135-181 Neural Stem/Progenitor Cell Clones or “Neurospheres”....Pages 183-201 Neural Stem Cells and Specification of Cell Fates....Pages 203-227 Manipulation of Neural Precursors In Situ ....Pages 229-267 Neural Stem Cells in the Adult Hippocampus....Pages 269-286 Front Matter....Pages 287-287 Global Gene and Cell Replacement Strategies Via Stem Cells....Pages 289-332 Neural Stem Cells in and from the Spinal Cord....Pages 333-345 Stem Cells for Spinal Cord Injury....Pages 347-365 Spinal Ischemia-Induced Paraplegia....Pages 367-393 Utilization of Marrow Stromal Cells for Gene Transfer into the CNS....Pages 395-409 Preclinical Basis for Use of NT2N Cells in Neural Transplantation Therapy....Pages 411-429 Back Matter....Pages 431-434