Coordinator: Jaderson Costa da Costa, MD, PhD

Members: Zaquer Costa-Ferro, PhD ; Daniel Marinowic, PhD ; Samuel Greggio, PhD ; Gianina Venturin, PhD ; Gabriele Zanirati, PhD ; Pamela Nunes, MSc ; Daniele Vieira da Silva, MSc ; Simone Salamoni, PhD ; Rafael Cristovam , Gabriela Laguna (master's student in the Postgraduate Program in Medicine and Health Sciences) , Ismael Plentz (graduating in Biology) , Allan Alcará (graduating in Biology) , Eduardo Vieira de Souza (graduating in biology) , Bruno Schaeffer da Silva (medical student) , Carolina Marquezin Giacomello (medical student) , Fernanda Bruzzo (medical student) ; Gutierre Neves de Oliveira (graduating in medicine) ; Antônio Corte (graduating in medicine) and Laíse Prando da Silva.

The group of researchers from the Brain Institute of Rio Grande do Sul (InsCer-PUCRS) works with cell therapy in several experimental models of neurological diseases such as: neonatal hypoxia-ischemia, epilepsy, Parkinson, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, spinal cord injury spinal cord, among others. The research group has already conducted clinical trials (with humans) in cases of stroke and, in 2015, a clinical trial (Phase I) in patients with temporal lobe epilepsy was completed. Currently, the institute's researchers are working on the second part of this clinical study, which is currently recruiting adult patients (18-60 years old) with temporal epilepsy with unilateral hippocampal sclerosis resistant to drug treatment. The results obtained so far, as in other centers of excellence worldwide, are promising.

However, InsCer warns: the use of stem cells for the treatment of non-hematological diseases (diseases that are not blood) is currently limited to the research scenario ( clinical trials or research) within the ethical precepts and current legislation of our country. For safe and reliable information on clinical studies (trials), including those in the recruitment phase of volunteer patients, visit the US government's English website ClinicalTrials.gov and filter your search with the keywords of interest (eg Stem Cells). This way, you will have access to information from all clinical trials using stem cells in the world.

Also visit the following websites Brazilian (1 and 2) and international (3 and 4) :

1. Brazilian Association of Cell Therapy (ABTCel)
2. National Cell Therapy Network (RNTC)
3. International Stem Cell Research Society (ISSCR)
4. A Closer Looks at Stem Cells

For more information on how to volunteer in the current research with stem cells in temporal lobe epilepsy at InsCer, click here .

Photos: Camila Cunha / Photographic Archive / ASCOM / PUCRS