Dr. Marler, the associate director for clinical trials at the Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, says a drug known as TPA has been available to treat stroke since 1996. If used quickly, TPA, which is also used to treat heart attacks, can dissolve blood clots and restore blood flow to the brain. And, because TPA can cause hemorrhaging if given in excess, many doctors may be reluctant to make quick decisions about its use. Dr. Marler says people interested in finding out whether their local hospitals dispense TPA should call them and ask. Dr. Ronald McKay then speaks with Dr. Goodwin about stem cells, another area of recent breakthrough research.
Stem cells are the undifferentiated cells that can grow into different kinds of cells.
They were first discovered when scientists studying leukemia found that stem cells could turn into blood cells. But recently, researchers have discovered that stem cells can also grow into neurons and can even turn into different kinds of neurons, depending on their location in the brain. Dr. Goodwin is then joined by Dr. Jeffrey Kordower , director of research at the Center for Brain Repair at Rush Presbyterian St. Luke's Medical Center in Chicago. Dr. Kordower injected monkeys with a toxin known to create a condition like Parkinson's and was able to then successfully reverse those symptoms using gene therapy. The treatment involved giving monkeys a virus that encodes for a gene that makes a chemical that in turn prevents certain nerve cells from dying.