RECENT PROGRESS IN IMMUNOISOLATED CELL THERAPY

Biohybrid implants represent a new class of medical device in which li ving cells, supported in a hydrogel matrix, acid surrounded by a semip ermiable membrane, produce and deliver therapeutic reagents to specifi c sites within a host. First proposed in the mid-1970s for diabetes, t his treatment modality has progressed rapidly in the past four years a nd is now being investigated not just for endocrine disorders but also for alleviation of chronic pain, treatment of neurodegenerative disor ders, and delivery of neurotrophic factors to sites within the blood b rain barrier, and as a practical alternative to conventional ex vivo. (C) 1994 Wiley-Liss, Inc.