Homing and migration of mesenchymal stromal cells: How to improve the efficacy of cell therapy?

Renal remodeling by CXCL10-CXCR3 axis-recruited mesenchymal stem cells and subsequent IL4I1 secretion in lupus nephritis

Human umbilical cord mesenchymal stem cells (hUC-MSCs) have shown potential as a therapeutic option for lupus nephritis (LN), particularly in patients refractory to conventional treatments. Despite extensive translational research on MSCs, the precise mechanisms by which MSCs migrate to the kidney and restore renal function remain incompletely understood. Here, we aim to clarify the spatiotemporal characteristics of hUC-MSC migration into LN kidneys and their interactions with host cells in microenvironment. This study elucidates that the migration of hUC-MSCs to the LN kidney is driven by elevated levels of CXCL10, predominantly produced by glomerular vascular endothelial cells through the IFN-γ/IRF1-KPNA4 pathway. Interestingly, the blockade of CXCL10-CXCR3 axis impedes the migration of hUC-MSCs to LN kidney and negatively impacts therapeutic outcomes. Single cell-RNA sequencing analysis underscores the importance of this axis in mediating the regulatory effects of hUC-MSCs on the renal immune environment. Furthermore, hUC-MSCs have been observed to induce and secrete interleukin 4 inducible gene 1 (IL4I1) in response to the microenvironment of LN kidney, thereby suppressing Th1 cells. Genetically ablating IL4I1 in hUC-MSCs abolishes their therapeutic effects and prevents the inhibition of CXCR3+ Th1 cell infiltration into LN kidneys. This study provides valuable insights into the significant involvement of CXCL10-CXCR3 axis in hUC-MSC migration to the LN kidneys and the subsequent remodeling of renal immune microenvironment. Regulating the CXCL10-CXCR3 axis and IL4I1 secretion may be developed as a novel therapeutic strategy to improve treatment outcomes of LN.

Mesenchymal Stem Cells in Cancer Therapy

The mesenchymal stem/stromal cells (MSCs) are multipotent cells that were initially discovered in the bone marrow in the late 1960s but have so far been discovered in almost all tissues of the body. The multipotent property of MSCs enables them to differentiate into various cell types and lineages, such as adipocytes, chondrocytes, and osteocytes. The immunomodulation capacity and tumor-targeting features of MSCs made their use crucial for cell-based therapies in cancer treatment, yet limited advancement could be observed in translational medicine prospects due to the need for more information regarding the controversial roles of MSCs in crosstalk tumors. In this review, we discuss the therapeutic potential of MSCs, the controversial roles played by MSCs in cancer progression, and the anticancer therapeutic strategies that are in association with MSCs. Finally, the clinical trials designed for the direct use of MSCs for cancer therapy or for their use in decreasing the side effects of other cancer therapies are also mentioned in this review to evaluate the current status of MSC-based cancer therapies.

Reduction of Oxidative Stress and Excitotoxicity by Mesenchymal Stem Cell Biomimetic Co-Delivery System for Cerebral Ischemia-Reperfusion Injury Treatment

A cerebral ischemia-reperfusion injury is ensued by an intricate interplay between various pathological processes including excitotoxicity, oxidative stress, inflammation, and apoptosis. For a long time, drug intervention policies targeting a single signaling pathway have failed to achieve the anticipated clinical efficacy in the intricate and dynamic inflammatory environment of the brain. Moreover, inadequate targeted drug delivery remains a significant challenge in cerebral ischemia-reperfusion injury therapy. In this study, a multifunctional nanoplatform (designated as PB-006@MSC) is developed using ZL006-loaded Prussian blue nanoparticles (PBNPs) camouflaged by a mesenchymal stem cell (MSC) membrane (MSCm). ZL006 is a neuroprotectant. It can be loaded efficiently into the free radical scavenger PBNP through mesoporous adsorption. This can simultaneously modulate multiple targets and pathways. MSCm biomimetics can reduce the nanoparticle immunogenicity, efficiently enhance their homing capability to the cerebral ischemic penumbra, and realize active-targeting therapy for ischemic stroke. In animal experiments, PB-006@MSC integrated reactive oxygen species (ROS) scavenging and neuroprotection. Thereby, it selectively targeted the cerebral ischemic penumbra (about fourfold higher accumulation at 24 h than in the non-targeted group), demonstrated a remarkable therapeutic efficacy in reducing the volume of cerebral infarction (from 37.1% to 2.3%), protected the neurogenic functions, and ameliorated the mortality.

Harnessing the Therapeutic Potential of Mesenchymal Stem Cells in Cancer Treatment

Cancer, as a complicated disease, is considered to be one of the major leading causes of death globally. Although various cancer therapeutic strategies have been established, however, some issues confine the efficacies of the treatments. In recent decades researchers for finding efficient therapeutic solutions have extensively focused on the abilities of stem cells in cancer inhibition. Mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) are multipotent stromal cells that can the most widely extracted from various sources such as the bone marrow (BM), placenta, umbilical cord (UC), menses blood, Wharton's jelly (WJ), adipose tissue and dental pulp (DP). These cells are capable of differentiating into the osteoblasts, chondrocytes, and adipocytes. Due to the unique characteristics of MSCs such as paracrine effects, immunomodulation, tumor-tropism, and migration, they are considered promising candidates for cancer therapeutics. Currently, MSCs are an excellent living carrier for delivery of therapeutic genes and chemical agents to target tumor sites. Also, exosomes, the most important extracellular vesicle released from MSCs, act as a strong cell-free tool for cancer therapeutics. MSCs can prevent cancer progression by inhibiting several signaling pathways, such as wnt/β-catenin and PI3K/AKT/mTOR. However, there are several challenges associated with the use of MSCs and their exosomes in the field of therapy that need to be considered. This review explores the significance of MSCs in cell-based therapy, focusing on their homing properties and immunomodulatory characteristics. It also examines the potential of using MSCs as carriers for delivery of anticancer agents and their role in modulating the signal transduction pathways of cancer cells.

Leveraging Cell Migration Dynamics to Discriminate Between Senescent and Presenescent Human Mesenchymal Stem Cells

Purpose

The suboptimal clinical performance of human mesenchymal stem cells (hMSCs) has raised concerns about their therapeutic potential. One major contributing factor to this issue is the heterogeneous nature of hMSCs. Senescent cell accumulation during stem cell expansion is a key driver of MSC heterogeneity. Current methodologies to eradicate senescent hMSCs have either shown limited success or lack clinical relevance. This study leverages the inherent capacity of hMSCs to migrate toward damaged tissues as a means to discern senescent from presenescent stem cells. Given the established deficiency of senescent cells to migrate through physiologically relevant environments, we hypothesized that a microfluidic device, designed to emulate key facets of in vivo cell motility, could serve as a platform for identifying presenescent cells.

Methods

We employed a Y-shaped microchannel assay, which allows fine-tuning of fluid flow rates and the degree of confinement.

Results

Highly migratory hMSCs detected by the device not only demonstrate increased speed, smaller size, and higher proliferative capacity but also manifest reduced DNA damage and senescence compared to non-migratory cells. Additionally, this assay detects presenescent cells in experiments with mixed early and late passage cells. The introduction of fluid flow through the device can further increase the fraction of highly motile stem cells, improving the assay's effectiveness to remove senescent hMSCs.

Conclusions

Collectively, this assay facilitates the detection and isolation of a highly potent stem cell subpopulation. Given the positive correlation between the migratory potential of administered MSCs and the long-term clinical outcome, delivering homogeneous, highly motile presenescent hMSCs may benefit patient outcomes.

Supplementary Information

The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s12195-024-00807-0.

Optimization of a nanoparticle uptake protocol applied to amniotic-derived cells: unlocking the therapeutic potential

Stem cell-based therapy implementation relies heavily on advancements in cell tracking. The present research has been designed to develop a gold nanorod (AuNR) labeling protocol applied to amniotic epithelial cells (AECs) leveraging the pro-regenerative properties of this placental stem cell source which is widely used for both human and veterinary biomedical regenerative applications, although not yet exploited with tracking technologies. Ovine AECs, in native or induced mesenchymal (mAECs) phenotypes via epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT), served as the model. Initially, various uptake methods validated on other sources of mesenchymal stromal cells (MSCs) were assessed on mAECs before optimization for AECs. Furthermore, the protocol was implemented by adopting the biological strategy of MitoCeption to improve endocytosis. The results indicate that the most efficient, affordable, and easy protocol leading to internalization of AuNRs in living mAECs recognized the combination of the one-step uptake condition (cell in suspension), centrifugation-mediated internalization method (G-force) and MitoCeption (mitochondrial isolated from mAECs). This protocol produced labeled vital mAECs within minutes, suitable for preclinical and clinical trials. The optimized protocol has the potential to yield feasible labeled amniotic-derived cells for biomedical purposes: up to 10 million starting from a single amniotic membrane. Similar and even higher efficiency was found when the protocol was applied to ovine and human AECs, thereby demonstrating the transferability of the method to cells of different phenotypes and species-specificity, hence validating its great potential for the development of improved biomedical applications in cell-based therapy and diagnostic imaging.

Application of Mesenchymal Stem Cells in Female Infertility Treatment: Protocols and Preliminary Results

Infertility is a global phenomenon that impacts people of both the male and the female sex; it is related to multiple factors affecting an individual's overall systemic health. Recently, investigators have been using mesenchymal stem cell (MSC) therapy for female-fertility-related disorders such as polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS), premature ovarian failure (POF), endometriosis, preeclampsia, and Asherman syndrome (AS). Studies have shown promising results, indicating that MSCs can enhance ovarian function and restore fertility for affected individuals. Due to their regenerative effects and their participation in several paracrine pathways, MSCs can improve the fertility outcome. However, their beneficial effects are dependent on the methodologies and materials used from isolation to reimplantation. In this review, we provide an overview of the protocols and methods used in applications of MSCs. Moreover, we summarize the findings of published preclinical studies on infertility treatments and discuss the multiple properties of these studies, depending on the isolation source of the MSCs used.

Biomimetic Metal-Organic Framework Gated Nanoplatform for Sonodynamic Therapy against Extensively Drug Resistant Bacterial Lung Infection

Novel antimicrobial strategies are urgently needed to treat extensively drug-resistant (XDR) bacterial infections due to the high mortality rate and lack of effective therapeutic agents. Herein, nanoengineered human umbilical cord mesenchymal stem cells (hUC-MSCs), named PMZMU, are designed as a sonosensitizer for synergistic sonodynamic-nano-antimicrobial therapy against gram-negative XDR bacteria. PMZMU is composed of a bacterial targeting peptide (UBI29-41) modified hUC-MSCs membrane (MSCm), a sonosensitizer meso-tetra(4-car-boxyphenyl) porphine doped mesoporous organo-silica nanoparticle and an acidity-responsive metal-organic framework ZIF-8. This innovative formulation enables efficient loading of polymyxin B, reduces off-target drug release, increases circulation and targeting efficacy, and generates reactive oxygen species upon ultrasound irradiation. PMZMU exhibits remarkable in vitro inhibitory activity against four XDR bacteria: Klebsiella pneumoniae, Acinetobacter baumannii, Pseudomonas aeruginosa (PA), and Escherichia coli. Taking advantage of the bacterial targeting ability of UBI29-41 and the inflammatory chemotaxis of hUC-MSC, PMZMU can be precisely delivered to lung infection sites thereby augmenting polymyxin B concentration. PMZMU-mediated sonodynamic therapy significantly reduces bacterial burden, relieves inflammatory damage by promoting the polarization of macrophages toward M2 phenotype, and improves survival rates without introducing adverse events. Overall, this study offers promising strategies for treating deep-tissue XDR bacterial infections, and guides the design and optimization of biomimetic nanomedicine.

Dimethyloxallyl Glycine Preconditioning Promotes the Anti-inflammatory and Anti-fibrotic Effects of Human Umbilical Cord Mesenchymal Stem Cells on Kidney Damage in Systemic Lupus Erythematosus Related to TGF-β/Smad Signaling Pathway

Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) is a chronic inflammatory autoimmune disease lacking effective treatments without adverse effects. Dimethyloxallyl glycine (DMOG) enhanced mesenchymal stem cells (MSC) capabilities, but it remains unclear how DMOG-pretreatment of MSCs augments their SLE treatment. Here, we explore the therapeutic potential of DMOG-pretreated human umbilical cord MSCs (hUC-MSCs) in a mouse lupus nephritis (LN) model. In vitro experiments showed that DMOG could alleviate the mRNA levels of tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-α, interferon (IFN)-γ, and interleukin (IL)-6 and increase the mRNA level of IL-13 in lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-induced inflammation in hUC-MSCs. DMOG enhanced the migratory and invasive abilities of the hUC-MSCs. In vivo animal studies revealed that DMOG-pretreated hUC-MSCs exhibited more pronounced inhibition of lymphadenectasis and reduced kidney weight and urinary protein content than MSCs alone. DMOG-pretreated hUC-MSCs improved renal morphological structure and alleviated inflammatory cell infiltration and renal fibrosis, evidenced by the reduced mRNA levels of fibrosis markers, including fibronectin (Fn), collagen alpha-1 chain (Colα1), collagen alpha-3 chain (Colα3), and TNF-α, IFN-γ, and IL-6 cytokines. Further investigation revealed that DMOG-pretreated hUC-MSCs down-regulated the expressions of transforming growth factor (Tgf)-β1 and its downstream effectors Smad2 and Smad3, recognized as central mediators in renal fibrosis (P < 0.05). The findings suggest that DMOG-pretreated hUC-MSCs can augment the therapeutic efficacy of hUC-MSCs in LN by enhancing their anti-inflammatory and antifibrotic effects, and the TGF-β/Smad signaling pathway may be involved in this process.

Modifying the Secretome of Mesenchymal Stem Cells Prolongs the Regenerative Treatment Window for Encephalopathy of Prematurity

Clinical treatment options to combat Encephalopathy of Prematurity (EoP) are still lacking. We, and others, have proposed (intranasal) mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) as a potent therapeutic strategy to boost white matter repair in the injured preterm brain. Using a double-hit mouse model of diffuse white matter injury, we previously showed that the efficacy of MSC treatment was time dependent, with a significant decrease in functional and histological improvements after the postponement of cell administration. In this follow-up study, we aimed to investigate the mechanisms underlying this loss of therapeutic efficacy. Additionally, we optimized the regenerative potential of MSCs by means of genetic engineering with the transient hypersecretion of beneficial factors, in order to prolong the treatment window. Though the cerebral expression of known chemoattractants was stable over time, the migration of MSCs to the injured brain was partially impaired. Moreover, using a primary oligodendrocyte (OL) culture, we showed that the rescue of injured OLs was reduced after delayed MSC coculture. Cocultures of modified MSCs, hypersecreting IGF1, LIF, IL11, or IL10, with primary microglia and OLs, revealed a superior treatment efficacy over naïve MSCs. Additionally, we showed that the delayed intranasal administration of IGF1-, LIF-, or IL11-hypersecreting MSCs, improved myelination and the functional outcome in EoP mice. In conclusion, the impaired migration and regenerative capacity of intranasally applied MSCs likely underlie the observed loss of efficacy after delayed treatment. The intranasal administration of IGF1-, LIF-, or IL11-hypersecreting MSCs, is a promising optimization strategy to prolong the window for effective MSC treatment in preterm infants with EoP.

Single high-dose intravenous injection of Wharton's jelly-derived mesenchymal stem cell exerts protective effects in a rat model of metabolic syndrome

BACKGROUND

Metabolic syndrome (MetS) is a significant epidemiological problem worldwide. It is a pre-morbid, chronic and low-grade inflammatory disorder that precedes many chronic diseases. Wharton's jelly-derived mesenchymal stem cells (WJ-MSCs) could be used to treat MetS because they express high regenerative capacity, strong immunomodulatory properties and allogeneic biocompatibility. This study aims to investigate WJ-MSCs as a therapy against MetS in a rat model.

METHODS

Twenty-four animals were fed with high-fat high-fructose (HFHF) diet ad libitum. After 16 weeks, the animals were randomised into treatment groups (n = 8/group) and received a single intravenous administration of vehicle, that is, 3 × 106 cells/kg or 10 × 106 cells/kg of WJ-MSCs. A healthy animal group (n = 6) fed with a normal diet received the same vehicle as the control (CTRL). All animals were periodically assessed (every 4 weeks) for physical measurements, serum biochemistry, glucose tolerance test, cardiovascular function test and whole-body composition. Post-euthanasia, organs were weighed and processed for histopathology. Serum was collected for C-reactive protein and inflammatory cytokine assay.

RESULTS

The results between HFHF-treated groups and healthy or HFHF-CTRL did not achieve statistical significance (α = 0.05). The effects of WJ-MSCs were masked by the manifestation of different disease subclusters and continuous supplementation of HFHF diet. Based on secondary analysis, WJ-MSCs had major implications in improving cardiopulmonary morbidities. The lungs, liver and heart show significantly better histopathology in the WJ-MSC-treated groups than in the untreated CTRL group. The cells produced a dose-dependent effect (high dose lasted until week 8) in preventing further metabolic decay in MetS animals.

CONCLUSIONS

The establishment of safety and therapeutic proof-of-concept encourages further studies by improving the current therapeutic model.

Ex Vivo Peptide Decoration Strategies on Stem Cell Surfaces for Augmenting Endothelium Interaction

Ischemic vascular diseases remain leading causes of disability and death. Although various clinical therapies have been tried, reperfusion injury is a major issue, occurring when blood recirculates at the damaged lesion. As an alternative approach, cell-based therapy has emerged. Mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) are attractive cellular candidates due to their therapeutic capacities, including differentiation, safety, angiogenesis, and tissue repair. However, low levels of receptors/ligands limit targeted migration of stem cells. Thus, it is important to improve homing efficacy of transplanted MSCs toward damaged endothelium. Among various MSC modulations, ex vivo cell surface engineering could effectively augment homing efficiency by decorating MSC surfaces with alternative receptors/ligands, thereby facilitating intercellular interactions with the endothelium. Especially, exogenous decoration of peptides onto stem cell surfaces could provide appropriate functional signaling moieties to achieve sufficient MSC homing. Based on their protein-like functionalities, high modularity in molecular design, and high specific affinities and multivalency to target receptors, peptides could be representative surface-presentable moieties. Moreover, peptides feature a mild synthetic process, enabling precise control of amino acid composition and sequence. Such ex vivo stem cell surface engineering could be achieved primarily by hydrophobic interactions of the cellular bilayer with peptide-conjugated anchor modules and by covalent conjugation between peptides and available compartments in membranes. To this end, this review provides an overview of currently available peptide-mediated, ex vivo stem cell surface engineering strategies for enhancing MSC homing efficiency by facilitating interactions with endothelial cells. Stem cell surface engineering techniques using peptide-based bioconjugates have the potential to revolutionize current vascular disease treatments while addressing their technical limitations.

Treating Alzheimer's disease using nanoparticle-mediated drug delivery strategies/systems

The administration of promising medications for the treatment of neurodegenerative disorders (NDDs), such as Alzheimer's disease (AD), Parkinson's disease (PD), Huntington's disease (HD), and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is significantly hampered by the blood-brain barrier (BBB). Nanotechnology has recently come to light as a viable strategy for overcoming this obstacle and improving drug delivery to the brain. With a focus on current developments and prospects, this review article examines the use of nanoparticles to overcome the BBB constraints to improve drug therapy for AD The potential for several nanoparticle-based approaches, such as those utilizing lipid-based, polymeric, and inorganic nanoparticles, to enhance drug transport across the BBB are highlighted. To shed insight on their involvement in aiding effective drug transport to the brain, methods of nanoparticle-mediated drug delivery, such as surface modifications, functionalization, and particular targeting ligands, are also investigated. The article also discusses the most recent findings on innovative medication formulations encapsulated within nanoparticles and the therapeutic effects they have shown in both preclinical and clinical testing. This sector has difficulties and restrictions, such as the need for increased safety, scalability, and translation to clinical applications. However, the major emphasis of this review aims to provide insight and contribute to the knowledge of how nanotechnology can potentially revolutionize the worldwide treatment of NDDs, particularly AD, to enhance clinical outcomes.

Enhanced therapeutic potential of Flotillins-modified MenSCs by improve the survival, proliferation and migration

Menstrual blood-derived endometrial stem cells (MenSCs) have attracted increasing interest due to their excellent safety, and lack of ethical dilemma as well as their ability to be periodically obtained in a noninvasive manner. However, although preclinical research as shown the therapeutic potential of MenSCs in several diseases, their poor cell survival and low engraftment at disease sites reduce their clinical efficacy. Flotillins (including Flot1 and Flot2) are implicated in various cellular processes, such as vesicular trafficking, signal transduction, cell proliferation, migration and apoptosis. In this study, we aimed to determine the effects of Flotillins on MenSCs survival, proliferation and migration. Our experimental results show that MenSCs were modified to overexpress Flot1 and/or Flot2 without altering their intrinsic characteristics. Flot1 and Flot2 co-overexpression promoted MenSC viability and proliferation capacity. Moreover, Flot1 or Flot2 overexpression significantly promoted the migration and inhibited the apoptosis of MenSCs compared with the negative control group, and these effects were stronger in the Flot1 and Flot2 gene co-overexpression group. However, these effects were significantly reversed after Flot1 and/or Flot2 knockdown. In conclusion, our results indicate that Flot1 and Flot2 overexpression in MenSCs improved their proliferation and migration and inhibited their apoptosis, and this might be an effective approach to improve the efficiency of cell-based therapies.

Decellularized skin pretreatment by monophosphoryl lipid A and lactobacillus casei supernatant accelerate skin recellularization

BACKGROUND

Bioscaffolds and cells are two main components in the regeneration of damaged tissues via cell therapy. Umbilical cord stem cells are among the most well-known cell types for this purpose. The main objective of the present study was to evaluate the effect of the pretreatment of the foreskin acellular matrix (FAM) by monophosphoryl lipid A (MPLA) and Lactobacillus casei supernatant (LCS) on the attraction of human umbilical cord mesenchymal stem cells (hucMSC).

METHODS AND RESULTS

The expression of certain cell migration genes was studied using qRT-PCR. In addition to cell migration, transdifferentiation of these cells to the epidermal-like cells was evaluated via immunohistochemistry (IHC) and immunocytochemistry (ICC) of cytokeratin 19 (CK19). The hucMSC showed more tissue tropism in the presence of MPLA and LCS pretreated FAM compared to the untreated control group. We confirmed this result by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) analysis, glycosaminoglycan (GAG), collagen, and DNA content. Furthermore, IHC and ICC data demonstrated that both treatments increase the protein expression level of CK19.

CONCLUSION

Pretreatment of acellular bioscaffolds by MPLA or LCS can increase the migration rate of cells and also transdifferentiation of hucMSC to epidermal-like cells without growth factors. This strategy suggests a new approach in regenerative medicine.

Identifying transcriptomic profiles of iron-quercetin complex treated peripheral blood mononuclear cells from healthy volunteers and diabetic patients

Peripheral blood is an alternative source of stem/progenitor cells for regenerative medicine owing to its ease of retrieval and blood bank storage. Previous in vitro studies indicated that the conditioned medium derived from peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) treated with the iron-quercetin complex (IronQ) contains potent angiogenesis and wound-healing properties. This study aims to unveil the intricate regulatory mechanisms governing the effects of IronQ on the transcriptome profiles of human PBMCs from healthy volunteers and those with diabetes mellitus (DM) using RNA sequencing analysis. Our findings revealed 3741 and 2204 differentially expressed genes (DEGs) when treating healthy and DM PBMCs with IronQ, respectively. Functional enrichment analyses underscored the biological processes shared by the DEGs in both conditions, including inflammatory responses, cell migration, cellular stress responses, and angiogenesis. A comprehensive exploration of these molecular alterations exposed a network of 20 hub genes essential in response to stimuli, cell migration, immune processes, and the mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) pathway. The activation of these pathways enabled PBMCs to potentiate angiogenesis and tissue repair. Corroborating this, quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR) and cell phenotyping confirmed the upregulation of candidate genes associated with anti-inflammatory, pro-angiogenesis, and tissue repair processes in IronQ-treated PBMCs. In summary, combining IronQ and PBMCs brings about substantial shifts in gene expression profiles and activates pathways that are crucial for tissue repair and immune response, which is promising for the enhancement of the therapeutic potential of PBMCs, especially in diabetic wound healing.

Evaluation of Alginate Hydrogel Microstrands for Stromal Cell Encapsulation and Maintenance

Mesenchymal stromal cells (MSCs) have displayed potential in regenerating organ function due to their anti-fibrotic, anti-inflammatory, and regenerative properties. However, there is a need for delivery systems to enhance MSC retention while maintaining their anti-fibrotic characteristics. This study investigates the feasibility of using alginate hydrogel microstrands as a cell delivery vehicle to maintain MSC viability and phenotype. To accommodate cell implantation needs, we invented a Syringe-in-Syringe approach to reproducibly fabricate microstrands in small numbers with a diameter of around 200 µm and a porous structure, which would allow for transporting nutrients to cells by diffusion. Using murine NIH 3T3 fibroblasts and primary embryonic 16 (E16) salivary mesenchyme cells as primary stromal cell models, we assessed cell viability, growth, and expression of mesenchymal and fibrotic markers in microstrands. Cell viability remained higher than 90% for both cell types. To determine cell number within the microstrands prior to in vivo implantation, we have further optimized the alamarBlue assay to measure viable cell growth in microstrands. We have shown the effect of initial cell seeding density and culture period on cell viability and growth to accommodate future stromal cell delivery and implantation. Additionally, we confirmed homeostatic phenotype maintenance for E16 mesenchyme cells in microstrands.

Mesenchymal stem cell therapy in diabetic foot ulcer: An updated comprehensive review

Background

Diabetes has evolved into a worldwide public health issue. One of the most serious complications of diabetes is diabetic foot ulcer (DFU), which frequently creates a significant financial strain on patients and lowers their quality of life. Up until now, there has been no curative therapy for DFU, only symptomatic relief or an interruption in the disease's progression. Recent studies have focused attention on mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs), which provide innovative and potential treatment candidates for several illnesses as they can differentiate into various cell types. They are mostly extracted from the placenta, adipose tissue, umbilical cord (UC), and bone marrow (BM). Regardless of their origin, they show comparable features and small deviations. Our goal is to investigate MSCs' therapeutic effects, application obstacles, and patient benefit strategies for DFU therapy.

Methodology

A comprehensive search was conducted using specific keywords relating to DFU, MSCs, and connected topics in the databases of Medline, Scopus, Web of Science, and PubMed. The main focus of the selection criteria was on English-language literature that explored the relationship between DFU, MSCs, and related factors.

Results and Discussion

Numerous studies are being conducted and have demonstrated that MSCs can induce re-epithelialization and angiogenesis, decrease inflammation, contribute to immunological modulation, and subsequently promote DFU healing, making them a promising approach to treating DFU. This review article provides a general snapshot of DFU (including clinical presentation, risk factors and etiopathogenesis, and conventional treatment) and discusses the clinical progress of MSCs in the management of DFU, taking into consideration the side effects and challenges during the application of MSCs and how to overcome these challenges to achieve maximum benefits.

Conclusion

The incorporation of MSCs in the management of DFU highlights their potential as a feasible therapeutic strategy. Establishing a comprehensive understanding of the complex relationship between DFU pathophysiology, MSC therapies, and related obstacles is essential for optimizing therapy outcomes and maximizing patient benefits.