Title:Regenerative Potential of Stem Cell-derived Extracellular Vesicles in Spinal Cord Injury (SCI)
Volume: 17
Issue: 3
Author(s): Franklin J. Herbert, Dhivya Bharathi, Sevanthy Suresh, Ernest David and Sanjay Kumar*
Affiliation:
- Centre for Stem Cell Research, a unit of inStem Bengaluru, CMC Rehab Campus Bagayam, Christian Medical College
Vellore, Tamil Nadu 632002, India
Keywords:
Extracellular vesicles, exosomes, mesenchymal stem cells, apoptosis, inflammation, spinal cord injury, autophagy, stem cells, neuroprotection, angiogenesis, motor recovery.
Abstract: Spinal cord injury is a devastating condition that is critically challenging and progressive,
needing immediate medical attention due to its complex pathophysiology and affecting the social
status and economic burden. Stem cell therapy has been the emerging therapeutic trend to treat
various diseases for decades. Mesenchymal stem cells pose more advantages over other stem cells
in immune-modulation, immune evasiveness, self-renewal, multipotency, etc. Due to various issues
in the recent past related to allogenic transplants, ethical concerns in obtaining tissues and
adult cells, host immune response, GMP grade production and certification, cell-derived products
or cell secretome have proven to be a promising approach and have been implicated in many
studies and also in many clinical trials. Utilization of these human MSC-derived exosomes/extracellular
vesicles in spinal cord injury has also been demonstrated in many pre-clinical animal models.
It is now proven to be therapeutically more efficient and safer than cell therapy. This review focuses
on employing human MSC derived EVs for SCI and continues to elucidate the recent advances
and emerging EVs trends from other cell types. We discuss biomaterial-based synergistic intervention,
mention mimetics and nanovesicles and finally touch upon safety concerns in EV therapy.