The incidence of amyloid plaques, composed mainly of bamyloid peptides (Ab), does not correlate well with the severity of neurodegeneration in patients with Alzheimer's disease (AD). The effects of Ab 42 on neurons or neural stem cells (NSCs) in terms of the aggregated form remain controversial. We prepared three forms of oligomeric, fibrillar, and monomeric Ab 42 peptides and investigated their effects on the proliferation and neural differentiation of adult NSCs, according to the degree of aggregation or concentration. A low micromolar concentration (1 lmol/L) of oligomeric Ab 42 increased the proliferation of adult NSCs remarkably in a neurosphere assay. It also enhanced the neuronal differentiation of adult NSCs and their ability to migrate. These results provide us with valuable information regarding the effects of Ab 42 on NSCs in the brains of patients with AD.
The treatment of Parkinson's disease (PD) using stem cells has long been the focus of many researchers, but the ideal therapeutic strategy has not yet been developed. The consistency and high reliability of the experimental results confirmed by animal models are considered to be a critical factor in the stability of stem cell transplantation for PD. Therefore, the aim of this study was to investigate the preventive and therapeutic potential of human adipose-derived stem cells (hASC) for PD and was to identify the related factors to this therapeutic effect. The hASC were intravenously injected into the tail vein of a PD mouse model induced by 6-hydroxydopamine. Consequently, the behavioral performances were significantly improved at 3 weeks after the injection of hASC. Additionally, dopaminergic neurons were rescued, the number of structure-modified mitochondria was decreased, and mitochondrial complex I activity was restored in the brains of the hASC-injected PD mouse model. Overall, this study underscores that intravenously transplanted hASC may have therapeutic potential for PD by recovering mitochondrial functions.
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