Cell-based therapies for vascular regeneration: Past, present and future

• Published in: Pharmacology & therapeutics (Oxford) Vol. 231; p. 107976
• Main Authors: Aghazadeh, Yasaman, Khan, Safwat T., Nkennor, Blessing, Nunes, Sara S.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: England Elsevier Inc 01.03.2022
• Subjects: Angiogenesis; Endothelial cells; Humans; Neovascularization, Pathologic; Neovascularization, Physiologic; Regeneration; Regenerative Medicine; Revascularization therapy; Stem cells; Tissue Engineering; Vasculature; vSMC; iEC; aSMA; BM; ANG1/2; DLL4; Angiogenesis; ASC; VE-Cadherin; hiPSC; HMVEC; LDL; NHDF; PDGFR; PI3Kb; VEGFR; HUVEC; MSC; Wnt; CD34; hESC; PECAM; EC; CD133; CD31; FGF; TIE2; VEGF; Revascularization therapy; ETV2; PBMC; Endothelial cells; ECM; MAC; Vasculature; Regeneration; 3D; AV; PDGF; Stem cells; EPC; ECFC; PVC; CD45
• ISSN: 0163-7258; 1879-016X
• DOI: 10.1016/j.pharmthera.2021.107976

Tissue vascularization remains one of the outstanding challenges in regenerative medicine. Beyond its role in circulating oxygen and nutrients, the vasculature is critical for organ development, function and homeostasis. Importantly, effective vascular regeneration is key in generating large 3D tissues for regenerative medicine applications to enable the survival of cells post-transplantation, organ growth, and integration into the host system. Therefore, the absence of clinically applicable means of (re)generating vessels is one of the main obstacles in cell replacement therapy. In this review, we highlight cell-based vascularization strategies which demonstrate clinical potential, discuss their strengths and limitations and highlight the main obstacles hindering cell-based therapeutic vascularization.