Special Episode: How Was the Cell Transplant Performed? - Treating Parkinson's Disease with iPS Cells!

Parkinson's disease is an incurable disorder of the nervous system that has affected millions of patients over many years. Now, a breakthrough treatment for this disease may become a reality. In October this year, a surgery was performed at Kyoto University to transplant nerve cells derived from iPS cells, which have the potential to differentiate into various cell types. For this episode, Dr. Jun Takahashi of Kyoto University's Center for iPS Cell Research and Application (CiRA), who developed this treatment, will make a guest appearance in the studio to talk about how he prepared for the groundbreaking cell transplant, and how the surgery was performed. Have they overcome safety issues such as tumor formation? We will examine these topics with Dr. Takahashi and through an interview with Dr. Shinya Yamanaka, the Nobel laureate and pioneer of iPS cell technology. This is the 14th episode of Science View to focus on the research and clinical application of iPS cells. It features never-before-seen video footage and exclusive interviews on the world's first iPS cell transplant for Parkinson's disease.