Each participant in the study had suffered a stroke beneath the brain’s outermost layer and had significant impairments in moving their arms and-or legs. A new stem cell experiment could aid researchers in learning more about brain injury , spinal chord injury and Alzheimer 's disease after providing results contradictory to the widely - held belief amongst neurosurgeons that brain damage is permanent and irreversible . The study also seeks to disprove the belief that the injected stem cells actually become neurons and instead propose that the cells enhance the brain ability to repair itself . While the team has been stunned by the significant improvements in patients , the study 's lead author has noted he is cautious about ' overselling ' the results while more research is needed to confirm the results .
A new stem cell experiment could aid researchers in learning more about brain injury , spinal chord injury and Alzheimer 's disease after providing results contradictory to the widely - held belief amongst neurosurgeons that brain damage is permanent and irreversible . The study also seeks to disprove the belief that the injected stem cells actually become neurons and instead propose that the cells enhance the brain ability to repair itself . While the team has been stunned by the significant improvements in patients , the study 's lead author has noted he is cautious about ' overselling ' the results while more research is needed to confirm the results .