Human Amniotic Epithelial Stem Cells Aa A Therapy For Alzheimer’s Disease Reetu Khan
Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is an irreversible neurodegenerative condition associated with cognitive decline in older populations1. Pathological hallmarks of this disorder include the accumulation of amyloid plaques, cerebral angiopathy and the loss of neuronal and synaptic function2. Despite being the most common cause of dementia, there is currently no cure for AD2. Modern therapies aim to cease progression of the disease. One novel treatment that has recently been brought to light is stem cellbased therapy. Kim et al. (2020) study the therapeutic benefits of human amniotic epithelial cells (hAESCs) on a transgenic mouse model of AD3. Upon receiving intracerebral injections of either hAESC or vehicle, Tg2576 transgenic mice and wildtype mice performed a set of behavioral tests to assess spatial and working memory. In the Morris water maze test, Tg2576-hAESC mice had shorter escape latencies than Tg2576-vehicle mice. In the Y-Maze test, Tg2576-hAESC mice displayed higher rates of spontaneous alternation compared to Tg-vehicle treated mice. Injection of hAESCs reduce Beta-secretase (BACE) activity, the protein responsible for development of amyloid plaque generation4, and improve cognitive function. These findings illustrate the potential hAESCs carry as a future therapeutic agent. Key words: Alzheimer’s disease (AD), human amniotic stem cells (hAESCs), BACE, amyloid plaques, neurofibrillary tangles, transgenic Tg2576 mouse model .
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