Human umbilical cord-derived stem cell sheets improve left ventricular function in rat models of ischemic heart failure

Research progress and prospects of benefit-risk assessment methods for umbilical cord mesenchymal stem cell transplantation in the clinical treatment of spinal cord injury

Over the past decade, we have witnessed the development of cell transplantation as a new strategy for repairing spinal cord injury (SCI). However, due to the complexity of the central nervous system (CNS), achieving successful clinical translation remains a significant challenge. Human umbilical cord mesenchymal stem cells (hUMSCs) possess distinct advantages, such as easy collection, lack of ethical concerns, high self-renewal ability, multilineage differentiation potential, and immunomodulatory properties. hUMSCs are promising for regenerating the injured spinal cord to a significant extent. At the same time, for advancing SCI treatment, the appropriate benefit and risk evaluation methods play a pivotal role in determining the clinical applicability of treatment plans. Hence, this study discusses the advantages and risks of hUMSCs in SCI treatment across four dimensions-comprehensive evaluation of motor and sensory function, imaging, electrophysiology, and autonomic nervous system (ANS) function-aiming to improve the rationality of relevant clinical research and the feasibility of clinical translation.

Advanced Cardiac Patches for the Treatment of Myocardial Infarction

Myocardial infarction is a cardiovascular disease characterized by a high incidence rate and mortality. It leads to various cardiac pathophysiological changes, including ischemia/reperfusion injury, inflammation, fibrosis, and ventricular remodeling, which ultimately result in heart failure and pose a significant threat to global health. Although clinical reperfusion therapies and conventional pharmacological interventions improve emergency survival rates and short-term prognoses, they are still limited in providing long-lasting improvements in cardiac function or reversing pathological progression. Recently, cardiac patches have gained considerable attention as a promising therapy for myocardial infarction. These patches consist of scaffolds or loaded therapeutic agents that provide mechanical reinforcement, synchronous electrical conduction, and localized delivery within the infarct zone to promote cardiac restoration. This review elucidates the pathophysiological progression from myocardial infarction to heart failure, highlighting therapeutic targets and various cardiac patches. The review considers the primary scaffold materials, including synthetic, natural, and conductive materials, and the prevalent fabrication techniques and optimal properties of the patch, as well as advanced delivery strategies. Last, the current limitations and prospects of cardiac patch research are considered, with the goal of shedding light on innovative products poised for clinical application.

Role of umbilical cord mesenchymal stromal cells in skin rejuvenation

Aging is the main cause of many degenerative diseases. The skin is the largest and the most intuitive organ that reflects the aging of the body. Under the interaction of endogenous and exogenous factors, there are cumulative changes in the structure, function, and appearance of the skin, which are characterized by decreased synthesis of collagen and elastin, increased wrinkles, relaxation, pigmentation, and other aging characteristics. skin aging is inevitable, but it can be delayed. The successful isolation of mesenchymal stromal cells (MSC) in 1991 has greatly promoted the progress of cell therapy in human diseases. The International Society for Cellular Therapy (ISCT) points out that the MSC is a kind of pluripotent progenitor cells that have self-renewal ability (limited) in vitro and the potential for mesenchymal cell differentiation. This review mainly introduces the role of perinatal umbilical cord-derived MSC(UC-MSC) in the field of skin rejuvenation. An in-depth and systematic understanding of the mechanism of UC-MSCs against skin aging is of great significance for the early realization of the clinical transformation of UC-MSCs. This paper summarized the characteristics of skin aging and summarized the mechanism of UC-MSCs in skin rejuvenation reported in recent years. In order to provide a reference for further research of UC-MSCs to delay skin aging.

Stem cell-based therapy in cardiac repair after myocardial infarction: Promise, challenges, and future directions

Stem cells represent an attractive resource for cardiac regeneration. However, the survival and function of transplanted stem cells is poor and remains a major challenge for the development of effective therapies. As two main cell types currently under investigation in heart repair, mesenchymal stromal cells (MSCs) indirectly support endogenous regenerative capacities after transplantation, while induced pluripotent stem cell-derived cardiomyocytes (iPSC-CMs) functionally integrate into the damaged myocardium and directly contribute to the restoration of its pump function. These two cell types are exposed to a common microenvironment with many stressors in ischemic heart tissue. This review summarizes the research progress on the mechanisms and challenges of MSCs and iPSC-CMs in post-MI heart repair, introduces several randomized clinical trials with 3D-mapping-guided cell therapy, and outlines recent findings related to the factors that affect the survival and function of stem cells. We also discuss the future directions for optimization such as biomaterial utilization, cell combinations, and intravenous injection of engineered nucleus-free MSCs.

Development of a thick and functional human adipose-derived stem cell tissue sheet for myocardial infarction repair in rat hearts

BACKGROUND

Heart failure (HF) is a major cause of death worldwide. The most effective treatment for HF is heart transplantation, but its use is limited by the scarcity of donor hearts. Recently, stem cell-based therapy has emerged as a promising approach for treating myocardial infarction. Our research group has been investigating the use of human induced pluripotent stem cell-derived cardiomyocyte patches as a potential therapeutic candidate. We have successfully conducted eight cases of clinical trials and demonstrated the safety and effectiveness of this approach. However, further advancements are necessary to overcome immune rejection and enhance therapeutic efficacy. In this study, we propose a novel and efficient technique for constructing mesenchymal stem cell (MSC) tissue sheets, which can be transplanted effectively for treating myocardial infarction repair.

METHODS

We applied a one-step method to construct the human adipose-derived mesenchymal stem cell (hADSC) tissue sheet on a poly(lactic-co-glycolic acid) fiber scaffold. Histology, immunofluorescence, and paracrine profile assessment were used to determine the organization and function of the hADSC tissue sheet. Echocardiography and pathological analyses of heart sections were performed to evaluate cardiac function, fibrosis area, angiogenesis, and left ventricular remodeling.

RESULTS

In vitro, the hADSC tissue sheet showed great organization, abundant ECM expression, and increased paracrine secretion than single cells. In vivo, the hADSC tissue sheet group demonstrated improved cardiac functional recovery, less ventricular remodeling, decreased fibrosis, and enhanced angiogenesis than the MI group.

CONCLUSIONS

We developed thick and functional hADSC tissue sheets via the one-step strategy. The hADSC tissue sheet showed excellent performance in treating myocardial infarction in the rat model.

Progress and promise of cell sheet assisted cardiac tissue engineering in regenerative medicine

Cardiovascular diseases (CVDs) are the most common leading causes of premature deaths in all countries. To control the harmful side effects of CVDs on public health, it is necessary to understand the current and prospective strategies in prevention, management, and monitoring CVDs.In vitro,recapitulating of cardiac complex structure with its various cell types is a challenging topic in tissue engineering. Cardiac tissue engineering (CTE) is a multi-disciplinary strategy that has been considered as a novel alternative approach for cardiac regenerative medicine and replacement therapies. In this review, we overview various cell types and approaches in cardiac regenerative medicine. Then, the applications of cell-sheet-assisted CTE in cardiac diseases were discussed. Finally, we described how this technology can improve cardiac regeneration and function in preclinical and clinical models.

Fabrication and Characterization Techniques of In Vitro 3D Tissue Models

The culturing of cells in the laboratory under controlled conditions has always been crucial for the advancement of scientific research. Cell-based assays have played an important role in providing simple, fast, accurate, and cost-effective methods in drug discovery, disease modeling, and tissue engineering while mitigating reliance on cost-intensive and ethically challenging animal studies. The techniques involved in culturing cells are critical as results are based on cellular response to drugs, cellular cues, external stimuli, and human physiology. In order to establish in vitro cultures, cells are either isolated from normal or diseased tissue and allowed to grow in two or three dimensions. Two-dimensional (2D) cell culture methods involve the proliferation of cells on flat rigid surfaces resulting in a monolayer culture, while in three-dimensional (3D) cell cultures, the additional dimension provides a more accurate representation of the tissue milieu. In this review, we discuss the various methods involved in the development of 3D cell culture systems emphasizing the differences between 2D and 3D systems and methods involved in the recapitulation of the organ-specific 3D microenvironment. In addition, we discuss the latest developments in 3D tissue model fabrication techniques, microfluidics-based organ-on-a-chip, and imaging as a characterization technique for 3D tissue models.

Engineered Tissue for Cardiac Regeneration: Current Status and Future Perspectives

Heart failure (HF) is the leading cause of death worldwide. The most effective HF treatment is heart transplantation, the use of which is restricted by the limited supply of donor hearts. The human pluripotent stem cell (hPSC), including human embryonic stem cell (hESC) and the induced pluripotent stem cells (hiPSC), could be produced in an infinite manner and differentiated into cardiomyocytes (CMs) with high efficiency. The hPSC-CMs have, thus, offered a promising alternative for heart transplant. In this review, we introduce the tissue-engineering technologies for hPSC-CM, including the materials for cell culture and tissue formation, and the delivery means into the heart. The most recent progress in clinical application of hPSC-CMs is also introduced. In addition, the bottleneck limitations and future perspectives for clinical translation are further discussed.