A newly identified fat in breast milk could lower the risk of cerebral palsy in premature babies, a study suggests.
Cerebral palsy is the most common motor disorder in children and causes debilitating, lifelong effects, such as difficulty walking, speaking, and performing basic motor tasks.
Duke University researchers found that the fat molecule helps create new cells that make white matter in the brain, a network of nerve fibers that connect different parts of the brain.
If used and developed into a drug, it could reverse cerebral palsy, which gives birth to about 10,000 babies in the US each year.
Dr. Eric Benner, author of the study and a pediatrician at Duke University Medical Center, said: “Developing therapies for children – especially such medically vulnerable children – is very difficult because there are rightly strict safety considerations.”
“The fact that this molecule is already present in something safe for premature babies – breast milk – is hugely encouraging.”
The condition is incurable, but is managed with physical therapy, oral medications, Botox, muscle relaxants, and sometimes surgery.
A study published Thursday in Cell Stem Cell found that the molecule 20-aHydroxycholesterol, found in breast milk, prevented and reversed cerebral palsy in mice.
The molecule, 20-aHydroxycholesterol, was tested on newborn mice and will be given to children in an upcoming trial.
Many of the babies in the study have gastrointestinal problems that prevent them from drinking breast milk normally.
‘It is known that fats in breast milk benefit a child’s brain development, but there are many types of fats in breast milk,’ said Dr Benner.
“Now we can begin to develop a therapy that isolates and delivers this lipid in a way that is safe for these babies’ unique challenges.”
The molecule works by entering the brain and binding to stem cells, cells that develop into other types of cells ranging from muscle to brain cells. These act as the body’s recovery system.
It then stimulates those stem cells to produce oligodendrocytes, which produce white matter in the central nervous system.
The newly produced white matter has been shown to prevent neurological damage that prevents children from moving and impairs other motor skills, hallmarks of cerebral palsy.
Cerebral palsy is a group of conditions that affect a person’s ability to move and maintain balance and posture.
It is the most common childhood motor disability, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, affecting about 10,000 newborns each year.
It is caused by abnormal brain development or injury to the brain, usually before birth.
Symptoms usually first appear during infancy or early childhood.
These include stiff muscles, exaggerated reflexes, muscle tone that is too stiff or too floppy, loss of balance, tremors, preference for one side of the body and difficulty walking, speech delays and learning difficulties.
As children with cerebral palsy mature, they are at greater risk for permanent health problems such as heart disease, lung disease, joint deformities, slowed growth, depression, and anxiety.
Dr. Agnes Chao, lead author of the study, said: ‘The timing of brain injury is extremely difficult to predict, so a treatment that could be safely given to all premature babies at risk would be revolutionary.’
“As a neonatologist, I’m so excited that I might be able to provide treatment for families with babies affected by early brain injury who would otherwise have no other options,” said Dr. Chao.
Dr. Benner said that while the study is promising, more research is needed.
The study, funded by the National Institutes of Health (NIH), was published Thursday in the journal Cell Stem Cell.