Abstract
Mesenchymal stromal cells (MSCs) show significant immune-suppressive properties both in vitro and in vivo. Based on their immune-stealth properties, allogeneic MSCs are used to treat several diseases, for example the injection of MSCs in infarcted heart tissue or their use in bone-cartilage regeneration. The most spectacular treatment was recently described. MSCs were able to down-regulate the severity of graft-versus-host disease, leading to an impressive 20 to 50% increase in the two-year survival of bone marrow transplantation patients. Here the current literature is reviewed to elucidate the different mechanisms involved in these two clinical treatment modalities of MSCs.
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Abbreviations
- BM:
-
bone marrow
- CTL:
-
cytotoxic T lymphocyte
- DC:
-
dendritic cell
- GVHD:
-
graft-versus-host disease
- HGF:
-
hepatic growth factor
- IFN-γ:
-
interferon-γ
- IL:
-
interleukin
- MHC:
-
major histocompatibility complex
- MI:
-
myocardial infarction
- MSC:
-
mesenchymal stromal cell
- NK:
-
natural killer
- TGF-β:
-
transforming growth factor-β
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Received: 2008.05.28, Accepted: 2008.09.12
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van den Berk, L.C.J., Figdor, C.G. & Torensma, R. Mesenchymal stromal cells: tissue engineers and immune response modulators. Arch. Immunol. Ther. Exp. 56, 325–329 (2008). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00005-008-0036-z
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00005-008-0036-z