WASHINGTON, January 21, 2003 (LifeSiteNews.com) - Adult bone marrow cells can become new brain cells, according to research at the National Institute of Neurological Diseases and Stroke in Bethesda, Md. “This study shows that some kind of cell in bone marrow, most likely a stem cell, has the capacity to enter the brain and form neurons,” says the head researcher, Dr. Eva Mezey of the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS), a branch of the National Institutes of Health. The results appear in the January 20, 2003 online early edition of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. Previous research has shown that donor bone marrow stem cells can migrate throughout the body in the bloodstream, differentiating into various cell types - but this work was carried out on animals. The current findings were the result of autopsy studies of brain cells from deceased patients who had received bone marrow transplants earlier in life. Dr. Mezey told BBC News Online: “We have had trouble convincing some members of the scientific community that this could happen, and as I see it, accepting this idea is the first step towards accepting the suggestion that adult stem cells could some day be used to replace neural elements lost to neurodegenerative diseases, stroke, or trauma.” She noted that current scientific enthusiasm remains focused on embryonic stem cells - despite results such as these. For the press release from the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke see: http://www.ninds.nih.gov/news_and_events/pressrelease_bone_marrow_neurons.htm