The therapeutic effects of cellular therapy for functional recovery after brain injury.

The studies presented in this article suggest that marrow-derived cellular therapy may be an effective adjunct treatment for functional recovery after stroke. Cellular therapy can enhance the endogenous restorative mechanisms of the injured brain, assisting the tissue as it returns to a "developmental" state and supporting the process of neovascularization, neurogenesis, and neural reorganization. The advantages of using MSCs are that they can be given as an autologous graft, avoiding risks of rejection and graft-versus-host reactions, and that they can be given intravenously, minimizing complications. It is anticipated that cellular therapy, in combination with standard rehabilitation therapy and neural retraining, can improve functional outcomes following stroke.