Dr. Curt Freed Responds to Nature Medicine Articles
Posted Dec 12 2008 3:42pm
Dr. Curt Freed Responds:
There were three articles published in Nature Medicine. Two said that some of the transplanted cells had deposits of protein similar to those seen in Parkinson's but that the transplants still seemed to function. The third said that the transplanted cells looked normal 14 years after transplant.
My group has seen no deterioration in dopamine neurons up to 14 years after transplant. Therefore, I think these articles are worth noting, but the authors had no reason to say that the transplants had "caught" Parkinson's from the patient. I am writing a letter to the editor of Nature Medicine saying that.
Let's look on the positive side. What would a kidney or liver transplant look like 14-16 years after transplant in a patient who did not receive immunosuppression (fetal cell transplant patients do not need immunosuppression). The kidney or liver would have been destroyed. These three Nature Medic ine papers and our transplant patients show that dopamine cell transplants survive and function indefinitely without immunosuppression.
Curt R. Freed, MD Professor and Head Division of Clinical Pharmacology and Toxicology Director, Neurotransplantation Program for Parkinson's Disease University of Colorado School of Medicine Denver, Colorado
There were three articles published in Nature Medicine. Two said that some of the transplanted cells had deposits of protein similar to those seen in Parkinson's but that the transplants still seemed to function. The third said that the transplanted cells looked normal 14 years after transplant.
My group has seen no deterioration in dopamine neurons up to 14 years after transplant. Therefore, I think these articles are worth noting, but the authors had no reason to say that the transplants had "caught" Parkinson's from the patient. I am writing a letter to the editor of Nature Medicine saying that.
Let's look on the positive side. What would a kidney or liver transplant look like 14-16 years after transplant in a patient who did not receive immunosuppression (fetal cell transplant patients do not need immunosuppression). The kidney or liver would have been destroyed. These three Nature Medic ine papers and our transplant patients show that dopamine cell transplants survive and function indefinitely without immunosuppression.
Curt R. Freed, MD
Professor and Head
Division of Clinical Pharmacology and Toxicology
Director, Neurotransplantation Program for Parkinson's Disease
University of Colorado School of Medicine
Denver, Colorado
Related Links.
http://www.newswise.com/p/articles/view/539402/