Jan Nolta Lab 2010

Link to Jan's talk at the International Society for Stem Cell Therapy (ISCT) Somatic cell conference, August 2009:

The role of Mesenchymal Stem Cells in the treatment of Huntington’s disease:

Translation from pre-clinical to clinical

We have used human mesenchymal stem cells/marrow stromal cells (MSC) for over 20 years to deliver factors throughout the bodies of immune deficient mice, to help the mice to have improved health and also to sustain engraftment of other human cell types. These MSC act as eficient, long-lived and safe bioreactors in the living body. We have now patented a novel technology (Olson, Wirthlin, Nolta-UC Davis) to use human mesenchymal stem cells, isolated from the bone marrow or fat of healthy donors, to deliver small interfering RNA directly into other cells. We are using this technology initally in our HD mouse models to prevent accumulation of the toxic mutant htt protein in the brain. Through this technology we hope to rescue at-risk striatal neurons from the destruction caused by the mutant htt protein.

HDSA website story:

http://www.hdsa.org/research/news/nolta.html

Links to CIRM funding press release:

 http://theaggie.org/print_article.php?id=3906

http://www.universityofcalifornia.edu/news/article/21088