Effects of short-term culture on populations of hemopoietic progenitor cells from mouse marrow

Allogenic Use of Human Placenta-Derived Stromal Cells as a Highly Active Subtype of Mesenchymal Stromal Cells for Cell-Based Therapies

The application of mesenchymal stromal cells (MSCs) from different sources, including bone marrow (BM, bmMSCs), adipose tissue (atMSCs), and human term placenta (hPSCs) has been proposed for various clinical purposes. Accumulated evidence suggests that the activity of the different MSCs is indirect and associated with paracrine release of pro-regenerative and anti-inflammatory factors. A major limitation of bmMSCs-based treatment for autologous application is the limited yield of cells harvested from BM and the invasiveness of the procedure. Similar effects of autologous and allogeneic MSCs isolated from various other tissues were reported. The easily available fresh human placenta seems to represent a preferred source for harvesting abundant numbers of human hPSCs for allogenic use. Cells derived from the neonate tissues of the placenta (f-hPSC) can undergo extended expansion with a low risk of senescence. The low expression of HLA class I and II on f-hPSCs reduces the risk of rejection in allogeneic or xenogeneic applications in normal immunocompetent hosts. The main advantage of hPSCs-based therapies seems to lie in the secretion of a wide range of pro-regenerative and anti-inflammatory factors. This renders hPSCs as a very competent cell for therapy in humans or animal models. This review summarizes the therapeutic potential of allogeneic applications of f-hPSCs, with reference to their indirect pro-regenerative and anti-inflammatory effects and discusses clinical feasibility studies.

Stem cell sources and therapeutic approaches for central nervous system and neural retinal disorders

In the past decades, stem cell biology has made a profound impact on our views of mammalian development as well as opened new avenues in regenerative medicine. The potential of stem cells to differentiate into various cell types of the body is the principal reason they are being explored in treatments for diseases in which there may be dysfunctional cells and/or loss of healthy cells due to disease. In addition, other properties are unique to stem cells; their endogenous trophic support, ability to home to sites of pathological entities, and stability in culture, which allows genetic manipulation, are also being utilized to formulate stem cell-based therapy for central nervous system (CNS) disorders. In this review, the authors will review key characteristics of embryonic and somatic (adult) stem cells, consider therapeutic strategies employed in stem cell therapy, and discuss the recent advances made in stem cell-based therapy for a number of progressive neurodegenerative diseases in the CNS as well as neuronal degeneration secondary to other abnormalities and injuries. Although a great deal of progress has been made in our knowledge of stem cells and their utility in treating CNS disorders, much still needs to be elucidated regarding the biology of the stem cells and the pathogenesis of targeted CNS diseases to maximize therapeutic benefits. Nonetheless, stem cells present tremendous promise in the treatment of a variety of neurodegenerative diseases.