STEM-PD is a clinical trial run by clinical and preclinical research teams in Sweden and the UK. The goal of the trial is to develop a safe and efficacious stem cell-based treatment for Parkinson’s disease.

The trial involves transplantation of stem cell-derived dopamine STEM-PD cells into the brains of Parkinson’s disease patients. The stem cell product to be transplanted in this trial is named “STEM-PD”. The cells are designed to form new functional dopamine neurons in the brain of the patient after transplantation, with the aim of replacing those neurons which have been lost during the course of the disease.

This clinical trial is an investigator-lead clinical trial sponsored by Skåne University Hospital in Lund and registered as EudraCT 2021-001366-38. The development of the product and the clinical trial has been funded by national and EU funding agencies as well as by the pharmaceutical company Novo Nordisk.

Why develop a stem cell therapy for Parkinson’s disease?

Parkinson’s disease (PD) is a progressive neurodegenerative condition that is classically characterised by slowness of movement, unstable gait, stiff muscles, and tremor. These motor symptoms are caused by the loss of a specific type of neurons which produce and release a chemical called dopamine. As the dopamine-producing neurons are progressively lost, the motor symptoms of…

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What are the STEM-PD cells?

The STEM-PD cells are dopamine progenitor cells which are derived from a special type of stem cells called pluripotent stem cells. As the original pluripotent stem cells can divide and multiply, they can generate a large number of dopamine progenitors which can be stored (cryo-preserved) for a long time, thus making it possible to do extensive…

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