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Christopher J. Rogers et al.

In late 2019, a novel coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2) emerged in Wuhan, capital city of Hubei province in China. Cases of SARS-CoV-2 infection quickly grew by several thousand per day. Less than 100 days later, the World Health Organization declared that the rapidly spreading viral outbreak had become a global pandemic. Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is typically associated with fever and respiratory symptoms. It often progresses to severe respiratory distress and multi-organ failure which carry a high mortality rate. Older patients or those with medical comorbidities are at greater risk for severe disease. Inflammation, pulmonary edema and an over-reactive immune response can lead to hypoxia, respiratory distress and lung damage. Mesenchymal stromal/stem cells (MSCs) possess potent and broad-ranging immunomodulatory activities. Multiple in vivo studies in animal models and ex vivo human lung models have demonstrated the MSC’s impressive capacity to inhibit lung damage, reduce inflammation, dampen immune responses and aid with alveolar fluid clearance. Additionally, MSCs produce molecules that are antimicrobial and reduce pain. Upon administration by the intravenous route, the cells travel directly to the lungs where the majority are sequestered, a great benefit for the treatment of pulmonary disease. The in vivo safety of local and intravenous administration of MSCs has been demonstrated in multiple human clinical trials, including studies of acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS). Recently, the application of MSCs in the context of ongoing COVID-19 disease and other viral respiratory illnesses has demonstrated reduced patient mortality and, in some cases, improved long-term pulmonary function. Adipose-derived stem cells (ASC), an abundant type of MSC, are proposed as a therapeutic option for the treatment of COVID-19 in order to reduce morbidity and mortality. Additionally, when proven to be safe and effective, ASC treatments may reduce the demand on critical hospital resources. The ongoing COVID-19 outbreak has resulted in significant healthcare and socioeconomic burdens across the globe. There is a desperate need for safe and effective treatments. Cellular based therapies hold great promise for the treatment of COVID-19. This literature summary reviews the scientific rationale and need for clinical studies of adipose-derived stem cells and other types of mesenchymal stem cells in the treatment of patients who suffer with COVID-19.

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Alexander Markov, et al.

Over recent years, mesenchymal stem/stromal cells (MSCs) and their potential biomedical applications have received much attention from the global scientific community in an increasing manner. Firstly, MSCs were successfully isolated from human bone marrow (BM), but in the next steps, they were also extracted from other sources, mostly from the umbilical cord (UC) and adipose tissue (AT). The International Society for Cellular Therapy (ISCT) has suggested minimum criteria to identify and characterize MSCs as follows: plastic adherence, surface expression of CD73, D90, CD105 in the lack of expression of CD14, CD34, CD45, and human leucocyte antigen-DR (HLA-DR), and also the capability to differentiate to multiple cell types including adipocyte, chondrocyte, or osteoblast in vitro depends on culture conditions. However, these distinct properties, including self-renewability, multipotency, and easy accessibility are just one side of the coin; another side is their huge secretome which is comprised of hundreds of mediators, cytokines, and signaling molecules and can effectively modulate the inflammatory responses and control the infiltration process that finally leads to a regulated tissue repair/healing or regeneration process. MSC-mediated immunomodulation is a direct result of a harmonic synergy of MSC-released signaling molecules (i.e., mediators, cytokines, and chemokines), the reaction of immune cells and other target cells to those molecules, and also feedback in the MSC-molecule-target cell axis. These features make MSCs a respectable and eligible therapeutic candidate to be evaluated in immune-mediated disorders, such as graft versus host diseases (GVHD), multiple sclerosis (MS), Crohn’s disease (CD), and osteoarthritis (OA), and even in immune-dysregulating infectious diseases such as the novel coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). This paper discussed the therapeutic applications of MSC secretome and its biomedical aspects related to immune-mediated conditions. Sources for MSC extraction, their migration and homing properties, therapeutic molecules released by MSCs, and the pathways and molecular mechanisms possibly involved in the exceptional immunoregulatory competence of MSCs were discussed. Besides, the novel discoveries and recent findings on immunomodulatory plasticity of MSCs, clinical applications, and the methods required for their use as an effective therapeutic option in patients with immune-mediated/immune-dysregulating diseases were highlighted.

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Alexander Markov et al.

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Osamu Honmou et al.

Transplantation of human mesenchymal stem cells has been shown to reduce infarct size and improve functional outcome in animal models of stroke. Here, we report a study designed to assess feasibility and safety of transplantation of autologous human mesenchymal stem cells expanded in autologous human serum in stroke patients. We report an unblinded study on 12 patients with ischaemic grey matter, white matter and mixed lesions, in contrast to a prior study on autologous mesenchymal stem cells expanded in foetal calf serum that focused on grey matter lesions. Cells cultured in human serum expanded more rapidly than in foetal calf serum, reducing cell preparation time and risk of transmissible disorders such as bovine spongiform encephalomyelitis. Autologous mesenchymal stem cells were delivered intravenously 36–133 days post-stroke. All patients had magnetic resonance angiography to identify vascular lesions, and magnetic resonance imaging prior to cell infusion and at intervals up to 1 year after. Magnetic resonance perfusion-imaging and 3D-tractography were carried out in some patients. Neurological status was scored using the National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale and modified Rankin scores. We did not observe any central nervous system tumours, abnormal cell growths or neurological deterioration, and there was no evidence for venous thromboembolism, systemic malignancy or systemic infection in any of the patients following stem cell infusion. The median daily rate of National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale change was 0.36 during the first week post-infusion, compared with a median daily rate of change of 0.04 from the first day of testing to immediately before infusion. Daily rates of change in National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale scores during longer post-infusion intervals that more closely matched the interval between initial scoring and cell infusion also showed an increase following cell infusion. Mean lesion volume as assessed by magnetic resonance imaging was reduced by >20% at 1 week post-cell infusion. While we would emphasize that the current study was unblinded, did not assess overall function or relative functional importance of different types of deficits, and does not exclude placebo effects or a contribution of recovery as a result of the natural history of stroke, our observations provide evidence supporting the feasibility and safety of delivery of a relatively large dose of autologous mesenchymal human stem cells, cultured in autologous human serum, into human subjects with stroke and support the need for additional blinded, placebo-controlled studies on autologous mesenchymal human stem cell infusion in stroke.

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Hui Ma et al.

Traumatic brain injury is one of the leading causes of mortality and morbidity worldwide. At present there is no effective treatment. Previous studies have demonstrated that topical application of adipose tissue-derived mesenchymal stem cells can improve functional recovery in experimental traumatic brain injury. In this study, we evaluated whether hypoxic preconditioned mesenchymal stem cells could enhance the recovery from traumatic brain injury. Traumatic brain injury was induced with an electromagnetically controlled cortical impact device. Two million mesenchymal stem cells derived from the adipose tissue of transgenic green fluorescent protein Sprague-Dawley rats were cultured under either hypoxic (2.5% O2 for 18 hours) (N = 30) or normoxic (18% O2) (N = 30) conditions, then topically applied to the exposed cerebral cortex within 1 hour after traumatic brain injury. A thin layer of fibrin was used to fix the cells in position. No treatment was given to the animals with traumatic brain injury (N = 30). Animals that underwent craniectomy without traumatic brain injury were treated as the sham group (N = 15). Neurological functions were evaluated with water maze, Roto-rod and gait analysis. Animals were sacrificed at days 3, 7, and 14 for microscopic examinations and real-time polymerase chain reaction analysis. The rats treated with hypoxic mesenchymal stem cells showed the greatest improvement in neurological function recovery. More green fluorescent protein-positive cells were found in the injured brain parenchyma treated with hypoxic mesenchymal stem cells that co-expressed glial fibrillary acidic protein, Nestin, and NeuN. Moreover, there was early astrocytosis triggered by the infiltration of more glial fibrillary acidic protein-positive cells and microgliosis was suppressed with fewer ionized calcium binding adapter molecule 1-positive cells in the penumbra region of hypoxic mesenchymal stem cells group at day 3. Compared with normoxic mesenchymal stem cells and traumatic brain injury only groups, there was significantly (p < 0.05) less neuronal death in both the hippocampus and penumbral regions in sections treated with hypoxic mesenchymal stem cells as determined by Cresyl violet and terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferase-mediated dUTP nick end-labeling staining respectively. The expression of pro-inflammatory genes (interleukin 6, interleukin 1a, interleukin 1b, tumor necrosis factor α) was upregulated and apoptotic gene (Caspase-3) expression was suppressed at day 3. Anti-inflammatory (interleukin 10) and anti-apoptotic (BCL2 associated agonist of cell death) gene expression was upregulated at days 7 and 14. Our study showed that a hypoxic precondition enhanced the beneficial effects of mesenchymal stem cells on neurological recovery after traumatic brain injury.

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Diseases Resources

‍ALS

‍Alzheimer's

‍Asthma

‍Autoimmune

‍COPD

‍COVID-19

‍Chronic Inflammation

‍Crohn's Disease

‍Diabetes

‍Fibromyalgia

‍Heart Failure

‍Kidney Disease

‍Immunomodulation

‍Liver Disease

‍Lupus

‍Lyme Disease

‍Multiple Sclerosis

‍Parkinson's Disease

Spinal Cord Injury

‍Stroke

‍RheumatoidArthritis

‍Primary BiliaryCirrhosis

‍MesenchymalStem Cells

‍Traumatic BrainInjury

ALS

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Diabetes

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‍Rheumatoid
Arthritis

‍Primary Biliary
Cirrhosis

‍Mesenchymal
Stem Cells

‍Traumatic Brain
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