NEUROTRAUMA 

Journal of Neurosurgical Sciences 2014 September;58(3):145-9

Copyright © 2014 EDIZIONI MINERVA MEDICA

lingua: Inglese

Stem cells and G-CSF for treating neuroinflammation in traumatic brain injury: aging as a comorbidity factor

Dela Peña I. ¹, Sanberg P. R. ¹, Acosta S. ¹, Tajiri N. ¹, Lin S. Z. ², Borlongan C. V. ¹ ✉

¹ Center of Excellence for Aging and Brain Repair, Department of Neurosurgery and Brain Repair, University of South Florida, Morsani College of Medicine, Tampa, FL, USA; ² Center for Neuropsychiatry, China Medical University and Hospital, No.2 Yude Road, Taichung, Taiwan, Republic of China

Traumatic brain injury (TBI), often called the signature wound of Iraq and Afghanistan wars, is characterized by a progressive histopathology and long-lasting behavioral deficits. Treatment options for TBI are limited and patients are usually relegated to rehabilitation therapy and a handful of experimental treatments. Stem cell-based therapies offer alternative treatment regimens for TBI, and have been intended to target the delayed therapeutic window post-TBI, in order to promote “neuroregeneration,” in lieu of “neuroprotection” which can be accomplished during acute TBI phase. However, these interventions may require adjunctive pharmacological treatments especially when aging is considered as a comorbidity factor for post-TBI health outcomes. Here, we put forward the concept that a combination therapy of human umbilical cord blood cell (hUCB) and granulocyte-colony stimulating factor (G-CSF) attenuates neuroinflammation in TBI, in view of the safety and efficacy profiles of hUCB and G-CSF, their respective mechanisms of action, and efficacy of hUCB+G-CSF combination therapy in TBI animal models. Further investigations on the neuroinflammatory pathway as a key pathological hallmark in acute and chronic TBI and also as a major therapeutic target of hUCB+G-CSF are warranted in order to optimize the translation of this combination therapy in the clinic.