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October 31, 2004


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Sick Kids researchers unmask the potential of stem cells found in adult
skin


TORONTO - Researchers at The Hospital for Sick Children (Sick Kids) have
shown that stem cells found in adult skin retain their embryonic
capability of making many types of cells. This discovery affirms the
potential that stem cells derived from this non-controversial source
possess for the development of possible therapies for spinal cord injury
and nervous system disorders. This research is reported in the November
issue of the scientific journal Nature Cell Biology.

“We think these stem cells are actually embryonic cells that go out into
the skin during development and then stay in reservoirs in hair
follicles,” said Dr. Freda Miller, the study’s principal investigator, a
senior scientist in Developmental Biology in the Sick Kids Research
Institute and a professor of Molecular and Medical Genetics, and
Physiology at the University of Toronto.

“These stem cells are similar to a type of embryonic stem cell called a
neural crest stem cell, and like neural crest stem cells, are endogenous
and multipotent in nature. These neural crest stem cells generate the
peripheral nervous system, and we are therefore now confident that we
can make neural and other types of cells from the stem cells found in
adult skin,” added Dr. Miller, also Canada Research Chair in
Developmental Neurobiology .

The research team can now predict what type of cells can be made from
these stem cells (called skin-derived precursors, or SKPs) based on the
role played by neural-crest stem cells during embryogenesis. In addition
to generating the peripheral nervous system, neural crest stem cells
generate other tissues such as bone, cartilage, some types of muscle,
and even part of the heart. This research was conducted in mice, with
similar findings made recently by Dr. Miller’s group in the human cells.


“The cells that Dr. Miller’s group has found in the skin have huge
potential to treat brain disorders because they are capable of
transforming into neurons normally only found in the brain and other
nervous tissue. This new research provides an explanation for the cells’
ability to make neurons and further enhances our understanding of a
potentially valuable cell type for stem cell therapy,” said Dr. Ron
Worton, scientific director of Canada’s Stem Cell Network. “The Stem
Cell Network is pleased to have supported this work in Dr. Miller’s
laboratory.”

The co-lead authors of the paper were Dr. Karl Fernandes, a postdoctoral
fellow in Dr. Miller’s lab who holds a Canadian Institutes of Health
Research/Canadian Neurotrauma Research Program fellowship, and Ian
McKenzie, a graduate student in Dr. Miller’s lab from McGill University.
Other members of the research team included Pleasantine Mill, Kristen
Smith, Mahnaz Akhavan, Fanie Barnab é -Heider, Jeff Biernaskie, Nao
Kobayashi, Jean Toma, Dr. David Kaplan and Dr. Chi-Chung Hui, all from
Sick Kids, Dr. Victor Rafuse and Adrienne Junek from Dalhousie
University, and Dr. Patricia Labosky from the University of
Pennsylvania.

This research was supported by the Stem Cell Network, the Canadian
Institutes of Health Research (CIHR), the National Cancer Institute of
Canada, the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada,
the Parkinson Foundation of Canada, the Christopher Reeve Paralysis
Foundation, the Canada Foundation for Innovation, the Ontario Innovation
Trust, and Sick Kids Foundation. Dr. Miller was a holder of a CIHR
Senior Investigator Award.

The Hospital for Sick Children, affiliated with the University of
Toronto, is Canada’s most research-intensive hospital and the largest
centre dedicated to improving children’s health in the country. Its
mission is to provide the best in family-centred, compassionate care, to
lead in scientific and clinical advancement, and to prepare the next
generation of leaders in child health.

Image of neurons differentiated from embryonic skin


For more information, please contact:
Laura Greer,
Public Affairs
The Hospital for Sick Children
(416) 813-5046
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