>newground
IU School of Medicine researchers (l-r) Eri Hashino, Dongni Feng, Edward Srour, and Dr. Keith March.
When a child is ill, a parent looks for a cure. But if a cure doesn’t exist, then what?
This is the case of Hilary Drammis, a mother who is also a clinical psychologist. “My son has neurological disorders. He’s deaf. He has processing difficulties and regulatory disorders.” When Drammis went looking for answers, she called Dr. Keith March, a leader in adult stem cell research at the Indiana University School of Medicine.
While March works in cardiovascular research, his studies offer possible treatments for a multitude of health issues. “Stem cells derived from fat can develop into many different cell types. They can be encouraged to develop into cells with characteristics of vascular tissue, bone, or muscle, for example. This is why research interest in stem cells is so high.”
Drammis had questions. For example, can stem cells be coaxed along neurological lines to aid the brain and nervous system? And might they be used to treat neurological diseases?
“We have data with our collaborators that these could indeed go in neurologic directions,” says March. “It’s still early, but the evidence is very encouraging.”
It was enough for Drammis. She made a gift to support a year-long pilot project to explore stem cell development along neurological lines. This project has in turn stimulated a new partnership between March’s laboratory and investigators from the Stark Neurosciences Center and the Gill Center for Biomolecular Science. Both these labs are focused on neurological research at Indiana University.
Adipose stem cells (ASCs) are of particular interest because of a recent discovery that adipose tissue — fat — contains a huge repository of stem cells. And that means they are easy to retrieve, as opposed to bone marrow or other sources.
“ASCs offer a number of advantages,” March says. “They are easily accessible with minimum invasion through liposuction. And since the stem cells taken for treatment can come from a patient’s own body, we remove the complications of rejection.
“Once removed, ASCs can be coaxed along particular lines of development, and finally injected back into the body where they home in on trouble spots to repair damage. In cardiovascular terms, this can lead to treatments for patients with such ailments as poor circulation or heart disease,” says March. “We’ve just begun clinical trials.”
“This research has the potential to proceed rapidly,” March continues. “Since it’s non-embryonic, the ethical questions and political obstacles are removed. Because these cells are adaptable, they can lead to treatments of such diseases as Parkinson’s, diabetes, heart disease, circulatory disorders, and much more.”
“Hope is within reach,” says Drammis. “Cures for many ills are possible today with this research. We can find help for our generation, and for our children. With God's help, miracles can happen.”
—Cary Boyce
Read more about Dr. March’s adipose stem cell research.