Autologous cord blood cells transplantation to preterm infants to treat brain damage and prevent neurodevelopmental disorders

Preterm birth is a global public health problem affecting one out of ten live births world wide.

A large number of preterm infants survive with white matter injury which leads to motor, cognitive, social and sensory deficits. No curative treatment is available.

Substantial evidence from animal models and clinical studies suggests that umbilical cord blood cell therapy offers a promising therapeutic approach for white matter injury.

Monocytes from UCB play an essential role in mediating the neuroprotective effects.Clinical trials in neonates have found that administration is safe, but to date, no studies have examined the long-term consequences of UCB cell therapy for white matter injury.

We propose to plan for a randomised investigator blinded controlled study on the use of a single injection of autologous cord blood mononuclear cells to treat preterm neonates