Neural Crest Stem Cell Therapy for Absence of Intestinal Nerves in Hirschsprungs Disease

先天性巨结肠病是一种常见的先天缺陷，由神经细胞无法进入结肠引起。这导致顽固性便秘，往往是致命的。目前的治疗方法是在出生后不久手术切除受影响的结肠，但问题往往持续存在。这些神经可以用神经干细胞重建，但不是所有的干细胞都有这种能力。目前尚不清楚这是否能在出生后实现：该项目将确定使用哪种干细胞群以及在什么年龄的肠道中使用。

Hirschsprung's disease is acommon birth defect caused by failure of nerve cells to get into the colon. This results in intractable often fatal constipation. Current treatment is surgical removal of the affected colon soon after birth but often problems persist. These nerves might be rebuilt using nerve stem cells, but not all stem cells have this capacity. And is not known if this can be achieved after birth: This project will define which stem cell populations to use and in what age of bowel.