The Effect of Donor-Dependent Administration of Human Umbilical Cord Blood-Derived Mesenchymal Stem Cells following Focal Cerebral Ischemia in Rats

Mining human clinical waste as a rich source of stem cells for neural regeneration

Neural diseases are challenging to treat and are regarded as one of the major causes of disability and morbidity in the world. Stem cells can provide a solution, by offering a mechanism to replace damaged circuitry. However, obtaining sufficient cell sources for neural regeneration remains a significant challenge. In recent years, waste-derived stem(-like) cells (WDS-lCs) extracted from both prenatal and adult clinical waste tissues/products, have gained increasing attention for application in neural tissue repair and remodeling. This often-overlooked pool of cells possesses favorable characteristics; including self-renewal, neural differentiation, secretion of neurogenic factors, cost-effectiveness, and low ethical concerns. Here, we offer a perspective regarding the biological properties, extraction protocols, and preclinical and clinical treatments where prenatal and adult WDS-lCs have been utilized for cell replacement therapy in neural applications, and the challenges involved in optimizing these approaches toward patient led therapies.

Mesenchymal stem cells and their extracellular vesicles as emerging therapeutic tools in the treatment of ischemic stroke

Ischemic stroke (IS) is a neurological condition characterized by severe long-term consequences and an unfavorable prognosis for numerous patients. Despite advancements in stroke treatment, existing therapeutic approaches possess certain limitations. However, accumulating evidence suggests that mesenchymal stem/stromal cells (MSCs) hold promise as a potential therapy for various neurological disorders, including IS, owing to their advantageous properties, such as immunomodulation and tissue regeneration. Additionally, MSCs primarily exert their therapeutic effects through the release of extracellular vesicles (EVs), highlighting the significance of their paracrine activities. These EVs are small double-layered phospholipid membrane vesicles, carrying a diverse cargo of proteins, lipids, and miRNAs that enable effective cell-to-cell communication. Notably, EVs have emerged as attractive substitutes for stem cell therapy due to their reduced immunogenicity, lower tumorigenic potential, and ease of administration and handling. Hence, this review summarizes the current preclinical and clinical studies performed to investigate the safety and therapeutic potential of MSCs and their EVs derived from different sources, including bone marrow, adipose tissue, umbilical cord blood, and Wharton's jelly in IS.

Stem Cell-Based Therapy for Experimental Ischemic Stroke: A Preclinical Systematic Review

Stem cell transplantation offers promise in the treatment of ischemic stroke. Here we utilized systematic review, meta-analysis, and meta-regression to study the biological effect of stem cell treatments in animal models of ischemic stroke. A total of 98 eligible publications were included by searching PubMed, EMBASE, and Web of Science from inception to August 1, 2020. There are about 141 comparisons, involving 5,200 animals, that examined the effect of stem cell transplantation on neurological function and infarct volume as primary outcome measures in animal models for stroke. Stem cell-based therapy can improve both neurological function (effect size, −3.37; 95% confidence interval, −3.83 to −2.90) and infarct volume (effect size, −11.37; 95% confidence interval, −12.89 to −9.85) compared with controls. These results suggest that stem cell therapy could improve neurological function deficits and infarct volume, exerting potential neuroprotective effect for experimental ischemic stroke, but further clinical studies are still needed.

Intrastriatal administration of coenzyme Q10 enhances neuroprotection in a Parkinson's disease rat model

Parkinson's disease is a neurodegenerative disorder, and no treatment has been yet established to prevent disease progression. Coenzyme Q10, an antioxidant, has been considered a promising neuroprotective agent; however, conventional oral administration provides limited efficacy due to its very low bioavailability. In this study, we hypothesised that continuous, intrastriatal administration of a low dose of Coenzyme Q10 could effectively prevent dopaminergic neuron degeneration. To this end, a Parkinson's disease rat model induced by 6-hydroxydopamine was established, and the treatment was applied a week before the full establishment of this disease model. Behavioural tests showed a dramatically decreased number of asymmetric rotations in the intrastriatal Coenzyme Q10 group compared with the no treatment group. Rats with intrastriatal Coenzyme Q10 exposure also exhibited a larger number of dopaminergic neurons, higher expression of neurogenetic and angiogenetic factors, and less inflammation, and the effects were more prominent than those of orally administered Coenzyme Q10, although the dose of intrastriatal Coenzyme Q10 was 17,000-times lower than that of orally-administered Coenzyme Q10. Therefore, continuous, intrastriatal delivery of Coenzyme Q10, especially when combined with implantable devices for convection-enhanced delivery or deep brain stimulation, can be an effective strategy to prevent neurodegeneration in Parkinson's disease.

Task Force Paper On Cerebellar Transplantation: Are We Ready to Treat Cerebellar Disorders with Cell Therapy?

Restoration of damaged central nervous system structures, functional recovery, and prevention of neuronal loss during neurodegenerative diseases are major objectives in cerebellar research. The highly organized anatomical structure of the cerebellum with numerous inputs/outputs, the complexity of cerebellar functions, and the large spectrum of cerebellar ataxias render therapies of cerebellar disorders highly challenging. There are currently several therapeutic approaches including motor rehabilitation, neuroprotective drugs, non-invasive cerebellar stimulation, molecularly based therapy targeting pathogenesis of the disease, and neurotransplantation. We discuss the goals and possible beneficial mechanisms of transplantation therapy for cerebellar damage and its limitations and factors determining outcome.

Topically applied adipose-derived mesenchymal stem cell treatment in experimental focal cerebral ischemia

In this study, the neuro-modulation effect of topical mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) was tested in a rodent middle carotid artery occlusion (MCAO) model. Twenty-four hours after MCAO, craniotomy was made and 0.8 × 10⁶ GFP-MSCs were topically applied to the exposed parietal cortex. The MSCs were fixed in position by a thin layer of fibrin glue (N = 30). In the control group, saline were topically applied to the ipsilateral parietal cortex (N = 30). Three days after topical application, few GFP-positive cells were found in the ischemic penumbra. They expressed GFAP and NeuN. Topical MSCs triggered microglial activation, astrocytosis and cellular proliferation at day 3. The recovery of neurological functions were significantly enhanced as determined in Rotarod test and Morris Water Maze test with smaller infarct volume. PCR array showed that expressions of ten genes of neurogenesis were altered in the penumbra region (fold change > 1.25, p < 0.05) in MSCs group: Apoe, Ascl1, Efnb1, Mef2c, Nog, A100a6 and B2m were up-regulated; Pax2, Pax3 and Th were down-regulated. In conclusion, topical application provided a direct and effective transplant method for the delivery of MSCs to the surface of ipsilateral cerebral cortex and the topical MSCs could improve the neurological function from cerebral ischemia resulting from a major cerebral artery occlusion in a rodent experimental model.

Gelatin-Coated Polycaprolactone Nanoparticle-Mediated Naringenin Delivery Rescue Human Mesenchymal Stem Cells from Oxygen Glucose Deprivation-Induced Inflammatory Stress

Ischemic stroke involves pro-inflammatory species, which implicates inflammation in the disease mechanism. Recent studies indicate that the prevalence of therapeutic choice such as stem cell transplantation has seen an upsurge in ischemic stroke. However, after transplantation the fate of transplanted cells is largely unknown. Human mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs), due to their robust survival rate upon transplantation in brain tissue, are being widely employed to treat ischemic stroke. In the present study, we have evaluated naringenin-loaded gelatin-coated polycaprolactone nanoparticles (nar-gel-c-PCL NPs) to rescue MSCs against oxygen glucose deprived insult. Naringenin, due to its strong anti-inflammatory effects, remains a therapeutic choice in neurological disorders. Though, the low solubility and inefficient delivery remain challenges in using naringenin as a therapeutic drug. The present study showed that inflammation occurred in MSCs during their treatment with oxygen glucose deprivation (OGD) and was well overturned by treatment with nar-gel-c-PCL NPs. In brief, the results indicated that nar-gel-c-PCL NPs were able to protect the loss of cell membrane integrity and restored neuronal morphology. Then nar-gel-c-PCL NPs successfully protected the human MSCs against OGD-induced inflammation as evident by reduced level of pro-inflammatory cytokine (TNF-α, IFN-γ, and IL-1β) and other inflammatory biomarkers (COX2, iNOS, and MPO activity). Therefore, the modulation of inflammation by treatment with nar-gel-c-PCL NPs in MSCs could provide a novel strategy to improve MSC-based therapy, and thus, our nanoformulation may find a wide therapeutic application in ischemic stroke and other neuro-inflammatory diseases.

Fingolimod Exerts only Temporary Antiepileptogenic Effects but Longer-Lasting Positive Effects on Behavior in the WAG/Rij Rat Absence Epilepsy Model

One of the major challenges in the epilepsy field is identifying disease-modifying drugs in order to prevent or delay spontaneous recurrent seizure onset or to cure already established epilepsy. It has been recently reported that fingolimod, currently approved for the treatment of relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis, has demonstrated antiepileptogenic effects in 2 different preclinical models of acquired epilepsy. However, to date, no data exist regarding the role of fingolimod against genetic epilepsy. Therefore, we have addressed this issue by studying the effects of fingolimod in Wistar Albino Glaxo/Rijswijk (WAG/Rij) rats, a well-established genetic model of absence epilepsy, epileptogenesis, and neuropsychiatric comorbidity. Our results have demonstrated that an early long-term treatment with fingolimod (1 mg/kg/day), started before absence seizure onset, has both antiepileptogenic and antidepressant-like effects in WAG/Rij rats. However, these effects were transitory, as 5 months after treatment discontinuation, both absence seizure and depressive like-behavior returned to control levels. Furthermore, a temporary reduction of mTOR signaling pathway activity, indicated by reduced phosphorylated mammalian target of rapamycin and phosphorylated p70S6k levels, and by increased phosphorylated Akt in WAG/Rij rats of 6 months of age accompanied the transitory antiepileptogenic effects of fingolimod. Surprisingly, fingolimod has demonstrated longer-lasting positive effects on cognitive decline in this strain. This effect was accompanied by an increased acetylation of lysine 8 of histone H4 (at both 6 and 10 months of age). In conclusion, our results support the antiepileptogenic effects of fingolimod. However, the antiepileptogenic effects were transitory. Moreover, fingolimod might also have a positive impact on animal behavior and particularly in protecting the development of memory decline.

Therapeutic Potential of Human Mesenchymal Stem Cells for Treating Ischemic Limb Diseases

Ischemic limb diseases are induced by different obstructions of peripheral arteries. These obstructions result in insufficient nutrient and oxygen supplies to the extremities, thereby leading to severe tissue damage that is in turn related to severe morbidities and mortalities. Mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) have been isolated from various sources. These cells are multipotent with respect to differentiation and are also characterized by migration, immune suppression, and secretion of paracrine factors. Mesenchymal stem cells have been proposed to have therapeutic potential for the treatment of ischemic limb diseases. In preclinical experiments, injection of single MSCs has been shown to increase angiogenesis and blood flow in ischemic hindlimb animal models; several molecular mechanisms of angiogenesis have also been elucidated. Furthermore, modified strategies have been developed for enhancing angiogenesis and the efficacy of MSCs. These strategies have demonstrated significant effects in pre-clinical studies. In clinical trials, MSCs have shown significant effects in the treatment of ischemic limb diseases. In this review, we focus on the therapeutic properties of human MSCs and the modified methods for enhancing angiogenesis in pre-clinical experiments. We also discuss the clinical applications of MSCs for treating limb ischemia.

Efficacy of umbilical cord-derived mesenchymal stem cell-based therapy for osteonecrosis of the femoral head: A three-year follow-up study

This is a retrospective analysis of the clinical effects of transplant of mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) derived from human umbilical cord-derived MSCs (hUC-MSCs) for the treatment of osteonecrosis of the femoral head (ONFH). The biological characteristics of hUC-MSCs were assessed using flow cytometry. Nine eligible patients were enrolled in the study as they adhered to the Association Research Circulation Osseous (ARCO) classification of stage II–IIIa, and hUC-MSCs were grafted by intra-arterial infusion. Organize effective perfusion was assessed using the oxygen delivery index (ODI). The results showed that the ODI was increased at three days post-operation. The MRI results revealed that at 12 and 24 months after treatment, the necrotic volume of the femoral heads was significantly reduced. No obvious abnormalities were observed. Taken together, these data indicate that intra-arterially infused hUC-MSCs migrate into the necrotic field of femoral heads and differentiate into osteoblasts, thus improving the necrosis of femoral heads. This finding suggested that intra-arterial infusion of hUC-MSCs MSCs is a feasible and relatively safe method for the treatment of femoral head necrosis.