Mesenchymal stromal cells as a choice for spinal cord injury treatment

• Published in: Neuroimmunology and neuroinflammation Vol. 7; no. 1; pp. 1 - 12
• Main Authors: Fracaro, Letícia, Zoehler, Bernardo, Rebelatto, Carmen Lúcia Kuniyoshi
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Core for Cell Technology,School of Medicine,Pontifical Catholic University of Paraná,Curitiba,80215-200,Brazil%Department of Genetics,Federal University of Paraná,Curitiba,81531-980,Brazil 2020
• Subjects: Tissue regeneration; immunomodulation; neuroregeneration
• ISSN: 2347-8659; 2349-6142
• DOI: 10.20517/2347-8659.2019.009

Spinal cord injury (SCI) is a serious clinical problem that affects approximately 17,500 new patients per year in the United States. The main causes of SCI are vehicle collisions, falls, violence (mainly gunshot wounds), and sports/recreational activities. The final severity of the damage results from primary and secondary mechanisms that begin at the time of injury and last for months after trauma. To reduce the extent of damage, several treatments have been proposed. This review summarizes results from several studies that have pointed to cell therapy as the main form of neuroregenerative treatment. Mesenchymal stromal cells (MSCs) are important candidates for tissue regeneration due to the release of bioactive factors, as well as antiapoptotic effects, scar inhibitors, and angiogenic effects. Studies have shown that MSCs act in various ways on injured tissue, such as immunomodulation of the inflamed environment, release of bioactive factors, restoration of axon myelin, prevention of neuronal apoptosis, and neuroregeneration. Current research using MSCs aims to prevent secondary injury, promote regeneration, and replace destroyed spinal cord tissue. This review presents information about the damage from primary and secondary events after SCI, treatments usually used, and pre-clinical and clinical results aiming at the cell therapy using MSCs as a tissue regeneration strategy.