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Claire Gegenheimer
Dr. Gammon
Writing 102
April 29, 2013
Treating Alzheimers Disease
The use of stem cells has been an ongoing controversy for over four decades. People have
questioned whether or not it is ethical, if it should only be used for certain circumstances, and if
it gives humans too much power; otherwise known as playing God. If one is to look at the
other side of this argument, one may be surprised by all of the things that stem cells are capable
of. There have been serious promises of treatments and even cures for conditions like
Parkinsons, diabetes, spinal cord injuries and Alzheimers disease. This paper will focus
primarily on whether or not stem cells will be a major contribution in finding a cure for
Alzheimers disease. It is one of the top ten leading causes of premature death in seniors over the
age of sixty five. Unfortunately, I know this fact all too well. I was around the age of five when
my mother and grandfather broke the news to me that my grandmother had Alzheimers disease;
that something was changing inside of her and turning her into a completely different person. It
was hard for a kindergartner to understand, but as the years went on, I learned exactly what
Alzheimers did. It not only took away my grandmas memory and her ability to speak and
function, but it also tore apart my family. It was a painful feeling to wonder if my grandma
would know who I was if I did not see her until the next day. Now, it has been almost six years
since I have seen her. She passed away in 2006 and is finally free. However, my family is not.
My grandmas neurologist once said that four and a half out of her five children would likely
develop the disease as well. This includes my aunts and uncles, and possibly my mother. Our
family is in the 5% of cases in which Alzheimers is hereditary. This is why this subject is so

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incredibly important to me. Stem cells could possibly be the miracle that saves my family and
millions of others around the world. Alzheimers disease is quiet, it is invisible, but most of all it
is deadly.
There are so many unknowns in the world of stem cells, especially when it comes to
chronic diseases such as Alzheimers. No one really knows if it can be prevented or if there is a
cure for it, let alone where it comes from in the first place. This information may seem daunting,
but Dr. Paul Knoepfler presents it in a way that is accessible to a varied audience, including those
who are unfamiliar with the subject of stem cells. His explanations are broken down into
common language rather than medical terminology. An example of this would be Knoepfler
referring to stem cells as healers or regenerating cells as wiping the plate clean. By using a
combination of scientific and ordinary words, he is able to reach a larger range of listeners. Dr.
Knoepfler of the Knoepfler Lab at UC Davis School of Medicine explains three current ways in
which stem cells could potentially treat the disease. In the article Can stem cells be used to treat
Alzheimers Disease? Dr. Knoepfler describes each possibility and how they may or may not
succeed. One avenue is to use stem cells to regenerate or literally regrow diseased parts of the
brain (Knoepfler). He continues on to explain that memory is integrated into the brain, therefore
re-growing new parts would literally erase all memories that were ever stored there. However,
his next two proposals sound much more promising. Another approach is to use stem cells such
as mesenchymal stem cells (MSC) not as rebuilding agents, but rather as healers of the existing
brain parenchyma (Knoepfler). It seems to make a lot more sense to heal the existing neurons
than produce new ones with the risk of complications. The final method is to use the
mesenchymal stem cells as a drug delivery agent (Knoepfler), meaning that medication would
not be taken orally or by injection, but instead delivered in the brain cell to cell. While these are

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only theories that are still undergoing tests and research, these concepts look promising for the
future, according to Dr. Knoepfler.
In 2009, scientists at the University of California in Irvine made some remarkable
discoveries regarding stem cell treatments for Alzheimers. In the article Neural stem cells offer
potential treatment for Alzheimer's disease, a collegiate level audience is being targeted,
especially to those students who are entering the fields of science and medicine. Jennifer
Fitzenberger from UCI Communications writes that transplanted cells seem to nurse the brain
back to health. The neural stem cells were implanted into the brains of lab mice which are
genetically altered to have this type of dementia. The rodents showed significant improvements
on memory tests and overall cognitive function. "Essentially, the cells were producing fertilizer
for the brain," said Frank LaFerla, director of UCI's Institute for Memory Impairments &
Neurological Disorders (Fitzenberger). This is essentially the second concept that Dr. Paul
Knoepfler described in the previous source, taking damaged cells and helping to rebuild them
without actually creating new ones. Since this has shown noteworthy progress in mice, it might
not be too long before similar tests are performed on humans.
Stem cell therapy is right around the corner for Alzheimers patients and for those who
are likely to develop the disease. According to a team of Korean scientists, a stem cell therapy
for the disease will be available by the year 2016. In The Korea Times article by Kim Tae-gyu, it
is explained that the scientists were skeptical about injecting mice with stem cells three years
earlier, but now they are confident that it is leading them in the right direction. As far as
cognitive functions are concerned, the mice nearly recovered to normal. In addition, we
discovered that the adult stem cells have preventive effects on potential sufferers of Alzheimers
(Tae-gyu). According to Suh Yoo-hun and Ra Jeong-chan, the lead professors of this effort, the

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findings not only show that Alzheimers patients could be treated, it could prevent the disease
altogether. This is especially promising to those who are beginning the aging process and those
who have a family history of A.D. Thankfully, the researchers estimated date is only three years
away, but with luck the testing may begin sooner than anticipated. The year of 2016 will be
remembered as the time when Alzheimers disease treatment effectively starts (Tae-gyu). These
Korean scientists must be very confident about the future of their ongoing work as this same
story has been publicly announced in many other countries who are also anticipating the arrival
of a cure.
There are two major factors that are slowing down the process of finding a cure. The first
is stated on the website for the California Institute for Regenerative Medicine (CIRM). The issue
that scientists face is the fact that no animal model truly mimics the disease (CIRM). In other
words, the drugs that have been used on genetically Alzheimers affected mice have not been
proven to work in humans. However, this testing is currently underway in Korea, which will
hopefully lead scientists to discover other methods of obtaining new drugs. The other major
factor is the cost of research. According to the Research, Condition, and Disease Categories
(RCDC), the National Institutes of Health (NIH) spent roughly $498 million in the year 2012
(NIH) and it is approximated that another $449 million will be spent this year. These numbers are
solely for the United States of America. However, the cost of Alzheimers Disease is nearly as
expensive. The Alzheimers Association reports that the disease will cost the nation $203 billion
for this year alone. That number is expected to rise to $1.2 trillion by 2050 (alz.org). It is an
epidemic disease; one that is not slowing down for the population of middle-aged to elderly
people. In fact, there are over five million people in this country living with the disease, but that
number is supposed to double within the next twenty years.

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In The Journal of Clinical Investigation, Olle Lindvall and Zaal Kokaia offer a purely
scientific standpoint on why stem cell research will contribute greatly towards a cure. The article
Stem cells in human neurodegenerative disorders time for clinical translation? describes
exactly what happens to the brain when it is affected with severe dementia. Knowing this is the
first step in understanding how to go about finding a successful treatment. The disease
symptoms in AD could partly be due to impaired formation of new hippocampal neurons from
endogenous NSCs in the subgranular zone of the dentate gyrus, which is believed to contribute to
mood regulation, learning, and memory (Lindvall and Kokaia). The two Swedish professors
continue to address the complexity of the brain and its functions until ultimately reaching a
conclusion about Alzheimers and stem cell therapy. The two of them believe that stem cells will
play an important role in finding a cure, or at least an effective treatment. Stem cellbased gene
therapy could deliver factors modifying the course of ADand may be advantageous because of
the capacity of stem cells to migrate and reach large areas of the brain (Lindvall and Kokaia).
Even though Lindvall and Kokaia do not say directly that a cure will evolve from stem cells, they
claim that it may at least slow the progression of the disease in order to prevent it from causing
further damage.
Stem cell research and stem cell therapy are already saving lives and improving the
quality of peoples health all over the globe. There have been many documented cases in which
people with leukemia, diabetes and sickle cell anemia have been successfully cured. I am
confident that one day it will be the same miracle that ends Alzheimers disease. To watch
someone you love forget everything that was ever important to them is heartbreaking. No one
should ever have to suffer the burden and the pain of Alzheimers disease, but scientists are on
the right path to finding the cure. I can only hope that will happen in the very near future for my

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family, and the sake of millions of people worldwide. Yes, it costs millions and even billions of
dollars, but the cost of care for Alzheimers and other disorders is even more. Not only this, but
the physical and emotional toll on the patient and caregiver must be taken into consideration. I
have seen firsthand what this chronic disease can do. The patients entire personality deteriorates,
turning them into someone unrecognizable. The families of Alzheimers patients are engulfed in
a never-ending cycle of spending countless hours in doctors offices, tending to their loved one,
and feeling heartbroken at the thought of the inevitable end. Thousands of dollars are spent on
medications that ultimately are not going to preserve any memories. If research means finding a
cure to some of the most devastating diseases known to man, then we as people should be doing
everything in our power to ensure that it can continue without interruption. Everyone must work
until the diseases that plague us today are no longer a threat, but a distant memory.

Works Cited
"Alzheimer's Disease Fact Sheet." California's Stem Cell Agency. California Institute for
Regenerative Medicine, 2010. Web. 2 Mar. 2013. <http://www.cirm.ca.gov/about-stemcells/alzheimers-disease-fact-sheet>.
Fitzenberger, Jennifer. "Neural Stem Cells Offer Potential Treatment for Alzheimer's
Disease."UC Irvine Feature: Alzheimer's Stem Cell. University of California- Irvine, n.d.

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Web. 27 Feb. 2013.

<http://www.uci.edu/features/2009/07/feature_alzheimersstemcell_090720.php>.
Knoepfler, Dr. Paul. "Can Stem Cells Be Used to Treat Alzheimer's Disease?" Knoepfler Lab
Stem Cell Blog. Knoepfler Lab at UC Davis School of Medicine, 16 May 2012. Web. 27
Feb. 2013. <https://www.ipscell.com/2012/05/can-stem-cells-be-used-to-treatalzheimers-disease/>.
"Latest Facts & Figures Report." Latest Facts & Figures Report | Alzheimer's Association.
Alzheimer's Association, 2013. Web. 20 Mar. 2013.
<http://www.alz.org/alzheimers_disease_facts_and_figures.asp>
Lindvall, Olle, and Zaal Kokaia. "Stem Cells in Human Neurodegenerative Disorders Time
for Clinical Translation?" The Journal of Clinical Investigation 120.1 (2010): 29-40.
Print.
NIH. "Estimates of Funding for Various Research, Condition, and Disease Categories
(RCDC)." NIH Research Portfolio Online Reporting Tools. N.p., 13 Feb. 2012. Web. 2
Mar. 2013. <http://report.nih.gov/categorical_spending.aspx>.
Tae-gyu, Kim. "Scientists Aim to Start Stem Cell Therapy of Alzheimer's by 2016." Scientists
Aim to Start Stem Cell Therapy of Alzheimer's by 2016. The Korea Times, 27 Sept. 2012.
Web. 1 Mar. 2013.
<http://www.koreatimes.co.kr/www/news/biz/2012/09/123_121075.html>.