These days, stem cell research is a very controversial, and everyone seems to have an opinion on what should be done with the findings.  Our firm’s San Diego spinal cord injury attorneys have no opinion one way or another on stem cell usage, but are keeping a close eye as to how they can help those who have lost the function of their spinal column.

New findings have shown that stem cells are regenerating hairs in the ears of mice that are essential for hearing, according to a story on  That makes our firm wonder:  does this mean that stem cells could be used to regrow cells and tissue in those with spinal cord injuries?  Simply put, could stem cells be the cure to paralysis?

Mice have lost hearing cells regrown, is the next step repairing spinal cord injuries?

Does this mean those living with paralysis can look forward to a new form of spinal cord injury treatment?  Not exactly, but it does mean that another step forward is taking place in the battle to cure those who are paraplegic or quadriplegic.

For the latest study, two kinds of stem cells were utilized and crafted into hair cells that exist deep within the ears of animals.  In this case, mice had lost these hairs, as well as the ability to hear certain sounds, but when the stem cells in the study were given the proper set of instructions, the hairs and the hearing returned.

Embryonic stem cells and induced pluripotent stem cells (iPS cells) from mice were used in this study by one doctor and his colleagues at Stanford University in California.  iPS cells are regular cells re-designed to function and work like stem cells, bring back destroyed cells in the body that were lost at one point.

“What we are thinking is to get human iPS cells from hearing loss patients and just try to re-make the disorder in the petri dish,” the expert doctor replied, saying that his team thinks there are numerous ways these new findings could be used when human stem usage is legally approved.

Though spinal cord injury treatments were not outrightly stated as a use of these new findings, our spinal cord injury attorneys know that stem cells are currently being studied and investigated by scientists around the world as to the possibility of helping in the recovery process of those who are paralyzed.

While we still have a long way to go in terms of discovering if stem cells are the permanent cure for paralysis, it is a step in the right direction to explore every avenue out there so that no potential treatment is overlooked.


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Local: Carlsbad

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