Lorenz Studer: Fetal Tissue Analysis
“It was quite a wild idea,” said Lorenz Studer, Director of Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center’s Center for Stem Cell Biology and new MacArthur Foundation “genius” grant recipient. He’s talking about the obsession that’s shaped his life since he was a young medical student in Switzerland a quarter of a century ago: a question that just might change the way medicine works. Is it possible to create and transplant brain tissue to heal conditions like Parkinson’s disease?
[Ask a MacArthur genius: Can feces fuel cars?]
“My target was always to use this for Parkinson’s,” he said. The disease, which affects about two of every 1,000 people, is found in those whose brains stop producing dopamine. This neurotransmitter is like the brain’s messenger …show more content…
The idea of transplanting working cells from fetal tissue was “quite radical at the time,” he recalls, but it made sense. “The more I started looking into it, the more clear it was that at least some fetal cells could survive in a brain and hook up with existing cells.” He began pushing for clinical trials using fetal tissue — and ran into an unexpected brick wall.
Not only were there ethical considerations about using material from aborted fetuses, but it turns out that fetal tissue isn’t a great source of working cells. “On the one hand it was very exciting,” said Studer. But on the other, it seemed clear that he just wouldn’t be able to generate the amount of viable material needed to actually treat the brain.
[Scientists grow ‘miniature stomachs’ from stem cells, which could patch up ulcers one …show more content…
“Soon there will be a sea change in how the industry views stem cells,” he predicted. With the help of this newfound funding, Studer hopes to invest in younger colleagues who will further the field long after neural transplantation for conditions like Parkinson’s become routine. Oh, and he's also getting a new bike. An avid sportsman, Studer will replace his 15-year-old model with one that’s a bit more current. “You have to keep going on different levels other than just science,” he said, laughing. Just because some ideas are wild doesn’t mean they’re not
[Ask a MacArthur genius: Can feces fuel cars?]
“My target was always to use this for Parkinson’s,” he said. The disease, which affects about two of every 1,000 people, is found in those whose brains stop producing dopamine. This neurotransmitter is like the brain’s messenger …show more content…
The idea of transplanting working cells from fetal tissue was “quite radical at the time,” he recalls, but it made sense. “The more I started looking into it, the more clear it was that at least some fetal cells could survive in a brain and hook up with existing cells.” He began pushing for clinical trials using fetal tissue — and ran into an unexpected brick wall.
Not only were there ethical considerations about using material from aborted fetuses, but it turns out that fetal tissue isn’t a great source of working cells. “On the one hand it was very exciting,” said Studer. But on the other, it seemed clear that he just wouldn’t be able to generate the amount of viable material needed to actually treat the brain.
[Scientists grow ‘miniature stomachs’ from stem cells, which could patch up ulcers one …show more content…
“Soon there will be a sea change in how the industry views stem cells,” he predicted. With the help of this newfound funding, Studer hopes to invest in younger colleagues who will further the field long after neural transplantation for conditions like Parkinson’s become routine. Oh, and he's also getting a new bike. An avid sportsman, Studer will replace his 15-year-old model with one that’s a bit more current. “You have to keep going on different levels other than just science,” he said, laughing. Just because some ideas are wild doesn’t mean they’re not