Adult Stem Cell Treatment for Central Nervous System Injury

Stem cells possess both self-renewing and multi-lineage differentiation properties and are being explored extensively for use as a cellular therapy for regenerative medicine. Historically, replacement of lost neurons and restoration of neural circuits was primarily considered as the main mechanism by which stem cells restore function in the injured central nervous system (CNS). However, evidence is accumulating that implicates stem cell-derived trophic factors in the neuroprotection of compromised endogenous neurons and regeneration of their axons and dendrites. In this concise review, we summarise the potential of bone marrow-derived stem cells (BMSC), adipose-derived mesenchymal stem cells (AMSC), dental pulp stem cells (DPSC) and neural stem cells (NSC) to repair the injured CNS, with particular reference to spinal cord injury and optic nerve/retinal injury.