Recent technological advancements have made it possible to create a wide variety of cells and tissues from pluripotent stem cells. We have improved and optimized the induced differentiation method for Schwann cells and have succeeded in efficient and stable production from human pluripotent stem cell lines. We have been using Schwann cells for drug discovery assays. Then, we are now conducting animal experiments to examine the possibility of cell therapy application using our Schwann cells. We are already verifying the safety and efficacy of Schwann cells for nerve repair, and are conducting research and development with the aim of realizing the world’s first cell therapy and regenerative medicine using Schwann cells.
What are Schwann cells?
Schwann cells are the main glial cells of the peripheral nervous system, which envelop and protect the axons of motor and sensory nerves and form myelin sheaths. This myelin sheath allows electrical signals to be transmitted quickly and efficiently along the nerve cells. In addition, Schwann cells play an important role in the repair and regeneration of nerve fibers. When nerve fibers are damaged, Schwann cells move to the site of injury, and the repair process is accelerated by production of neurotrophic factors.
Schwann cells and neurons
Human pluripotent stem cell-derived Schwann cells
Schwann cells have been known to be useful for nerve regeneration, but their practical use as cellular medicine has made little progress because of the difficulty of stably producing them. We have succeeded in efficient production of Schwann cells from pluripotent stem cells (ES cells and iPS cells), and we are now conducting research and development of cell therapy using these cells.
SCAD Schwann cells derived from human iPS cell lines
< Features of SCAD Schwann cells>
High maturity
High expression of MBP (myelin-forming protein)
Produces NGF (Nerve Growth Factor)
Cell therapies by using Schwann cells
Currently, we are conducting research and development for the practical application of Schwann cells as a cell therapy for nerve damage such as carpal tunnel syndrome (Note 1) and spinal cord injury.
The cell therapy for nerve damage by Schwann cells derived from human pluripotent stem-cells
Securing business feasibility through allogeneic cell transplantation
We are developing cell therapy by allogeneic Schwann cell transplantation, because it enables immediate availability of the cell medicine (Off the Shelf) and also the best quality control. In addition, we can reduce the cell production costs, by utilizing mass production methods of Schwann cells.
Advantages of treatment with allogeneic transplantation
(Note 1) Carpal tunnel syndrome:
A disease in which the median nerve is compressed in a tunnel, where a nerve called carpal tunnel on the palm side of the wrist and a tendon that bends the hand passes, causing numbness and pain. In the early stages, only the index and middle fingers are numb and painful, but eventually, the thumb and half of the ring finger (the innervated area of the median nerve) become numb. In the acute stage, this numbness and pain is strong at dawn, and when you wake up, your hands are numb and sore. Treatment includes oral medicines such as anti-inflammatory analgesics and vitamin B12, over-the-counter medications, reduction of exercise and work, local rest such as cine fixation, and conservative therapy such as intracarpal tunnel tendon sheath injection to control tendonitis. In refractory cases, surgery is required.
<External link>American Society for Surgery of the Hand
