Glial scar shown to stimulate growth-inhibitory proteoglycans by astrocytes. Experimental reduction of TGFβ-1 and TGFβ-2 has been shown to partially reduce glial scarring. Interleukins are another potential family of scar-inducing cellular messengers. Particularly, interleukin-1, a protein produced by mononuclear phagocytes, helps to initiate the inflammatory response in astrocytes, leading to reactive astrogliosis and the formation of the glial scar. The cytokine family of glial scar inducers include interferon-γ (IFNγ) and fibroblast growth factor 2 (FGF2). IFNγ has been shown to induce astrocyte proliferation and increase the extent of glial scarring in injured brain models. Further, FGF2 production increases after injury to the
Human embryonic stem cells clinical trials approved trials must take place in California, scientists are hopeful that this funding will bolster future research in the field. Human embryonic stem cells clinical trials The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved the first clinical trial in the United States involving human embryonic stem cells on January 23, 2009. Geron Corporation, a biotechnology firm located in Menlo Park, California, originally planned to enroll ten patients suffering from spinal cord injuries to participate in the trial. The company hoped that GRNOPC1, a product derived from human embryonic stem cells, would stimulate nerve growth in patients with debilitating damage to the