WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Transplanting brain cells produced from human embryonic stem cells helped fix stroke damage in the brains of rats, according to scientists who hope to test the same thing in people within about five years.

Researchers have been looking for ways to repair the brain damage from a stroke, which can cause permanent disability. In a study published on Tuesday, researchers at Stanford University School of Medicine in California reported that treatment involving human embryonic stem cells may be a solution.

Embryonic stem cells are the master cells that give rise to every cell and tissue in the body.

The Stanford team reported they restored lost limb function in rats that had stroke-related brain damage. They induced human embryonic stem cells to develop into neural stem cells that, once transplanted in the rats, developed into neurons and two other important types of brain cells.

The researchers hope to use this approach within about five years in studies involving people who have had strokes.

"We have a lot of evidence that we'll be able to use this kind of stem cell regenerative therapy in patients, including stroke patients," Stanford's Dr. Gary Steinberg, who helped lead the study, said in a telephone interview.