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Review
. 2015 May;8(1):54-68.
doi: 10.15283/ijsc.2015.8.1.54.

New strategies for overcoming limitations of mesenchymal stem cell-based immune modulation

Nayoun Kim  1 , Seok-Goo Cho  2
Affiliations
Review

New strategies for overcoming limitations of mesenchymal stem cell-based immune modulation

Nayoun Kim et al. Int J Stem Cells. 2015 May.

Abstract

Mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) have rapidly been applied in a broad field of immune-mediated disorders since the first successful clinical use of MSCs for treatment of graft-versus-host disease. Despite the lack of supporting data, expectations that MSCs could potentially treat most inflammatory conditions led to rushed application and development of commercialized products. Today, both pre-clinical and clinical studies present mixed results for MSC therapy and the discrepancy between expected and actual efficacy of MSCs in various diseases has evoked a sense of discouragement. Therefore, we believe that MSC therapy may now be at a critical milestone for re-evaluation and re-consideration. In this review, we summarize the current status of MSC-based clinical trials and focus on the discrepancy between expected and actual outcome of MSC therapy from bench to bedside. Importantly, we discuss the underlying limitations of MSCs and suggest a new guideline for MSC therapy in hopes of improving their therapeutic efficacy.

Keywords: Clinical trial; Immune modulation; Limitation; Mesenchymal stem cells.

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