Confirmation of the Enhancement Effect of ANCE Treatment on Functional Recovery of Manual Dexterity From Primary Motor Cortex (M1) Lesion in Adult Macaque Monkeys

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INTRODUCTION: A pilot study provided preliminary evidence indicating that peri-lesional adult autologous neural cell ecosystem transplantation (so-called ANCE) can enhance the functional recovery of manual dexterity in macaque monkeys following a unilateral lesion of the hand representation in the primary motor cortex (M1). As compared to five untreated control animals subjected to M1 lesions, the improvement of functional recovery was observed in our pilot study in two ANCE-treated monkeys (also M1 lesioned). To strengthen these promising preliminary results, the present study aimed at introducing two additional ANCE monkeys, as well as one new control monkey, all subjected to M1 lesion. METHODS: Manual dexterity was assessed based on the modified Brinkman board task, performed with the contralesional hand to retrieve small food pellets from slots using the precision grip (opposition of thumb and index finger). RESULTS: As with the two pilot ANCE-treated monkeys, the two new ANCE-treated monkeys exhibited a rebound of functional recovery (a second plateau) associated to the treatment (after approximately 2-3 months delay post-treatment), following a first plateau of spontaneous recovery. In contrast, all control monkeys (n = 6) exhibited a single plateau of functional recovery. CONCLUSION: The present study confirms that ANCE treatment significantly improves functional recovery from motor cortex lesions in adult macaques, with performance gains ranging from 20% to 40%. These findings support a possible future initiative to initiate clinical trials based on ANCE therapy.