New in-roads made in brain stem cell research

A recently-appointed University of Queensland researcher has made a world-first discovery of a mechanism that may stimulate the production of new nerve cells in the brain.

The groundbreaking discovery was led by UQ Foundation Chair in Molecular Neuroscience Professor Perry Bartlett with a team from the Walter and Eliza Hall Institute of Medical Research in Victoria.

“Last year we isolated for the first time the stem cell in the brain that is responsible for the production of new nerve cells and this has allowed us to start to identify how this stem cell can be regulated to produce new nerve cells in our brains,” Professor Bartlett said.

“We have identified the first major mechanism that may regulate this process.”

The findings received Advanced Online Publication (AOP) on Nature Neuroscience’s website (www.nature.com/neuro) today – Monday, October 7. The article is entitled Suppressor of cytokine signalling 2 regulates neuronal differentiation by inhibiting growth hormone signalling.

Professor Bartlett said surprisingly, the findings indicated stem cells were normally blocked from producing new nerve cells by the action of growth hormone.

“We have discovered a mechanism that can overcome this blockage. By inhibiting growth hormone action with the molecule SOCS-2, a normal regulator of the hormone, we can stimulate new nerve production.”

He said by stimulating the production of new nerve cells in the brain, normal brain function – such as memory formation – could be enhanced.

It could also allow for the replacement of nerve cells lost because of a stroke, trauma or neurodegenerative ailments such as Alzheimer’s Disease, Parkinson’s Disease or Motor Neurone Disease.

“It is now clear that the brain is a highly plastic organ with the ability to undergo rapid changes in neural circuitry at the anatomical, cellular and molecular level and a major part of this plasticity is the production of new nerve cells in response to various environmental stimuli,” he said.

An internationally renowned neuroscientist and brain stem cell researcher, Professor Bartlett will lead a group of Queensland researchers establishing a cell sorter facility for neuroscience and related biotechnology. They received the highest funding allocation of $500,000 for a UQ-led project in the recently announced Australian Research Council (ARC) Linkage – Infrastructure Equipment and Facilities (LIEF) 2003 funding grants.

The project aims to establish the world’s first cell-sorting facility dedicated to the isolation of brain stem cells and nerve cells suitable for molecular characterisation and screening, providing the basis for identifying key molecules regulating brain function, ageing and repair.

Professor Bartlett has published more than 170 papers in science and medical journals, mostly in the area of developmental neuroscience. His group’s work verifying the existence of the stem cell in the brain responsible for production of new nerve cells was featured last year on the front cover of the prestigious journal Nature.

He is past-President of the Australian Neuroscience Society and Head of the Development and Neurobiology Group at the Walter and Eliza Hall Institute of Medical Research.

Media: Professor Bartlett will be at The University of Queensland tomorrow – Tuesday, October 8. For further information, contact Professor Bartlett (mobile 0413 850 683, email: p.bartlett@uq.edu.au) or Joanne van Zeeland at UQ Communications (telephone 07 3365 2619, email: communications@uq.edu.au).