Embryo cell treatment a success in lab rat tests

HUMAN embryo cells have been used to treat rats with symptoms of Parkinson’s disease, in a move that has important implications for therapeutic cloning.

Scientists in Israel manipulated the stem cells in the laboratory before injecting them into the rats’ brains.

The cells developed into specialist neurons which are missing in Parkinson’s patients, and they reduced behavioural symptoms.

Stem cells taken from cloned human embryos could provide a future cure for brain diseases such as Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s, as well as diabetes, heart damage and many other conditions.

Scientists welcomed the research, but warned that much more work was needed to ensure that treatment was safe.

Dr Benjamin Reubinoff, from Hadassah University Hospital, Jerusalem, told the European Society of Human Reproduction and Embryology meeting in Berlin: "This study shows for the first time that human embryonic stem cell-developed neural precursors can induce partial functional recovery in an experimental model of Parkinson’s disease.

"We believe that these observations are encouraging, and set the stage for future development that may eventually allow the use of embryonic stem cells for the treatment of Parkinson’s disease."