Mesenchymal stromal cells in hepatic fibrosis/cirrhosis: from pathogenesis to treatment

Xue Yang; Qing Li; Wenting Liu; Chen Zong; Lixin Wei; Yufang Shi; Zhipeng Han

doi:10.1038/s41423-023-00983-5

Mesenchymal stromal cells in hepatic fibrosis/cirrhosis: from pathogenesis to treatment

Cell Mol Immunol. 2023 Jun;20(6):583-599. doi: 10.1038/s41423-023-00983-5. Epub 2023 Feb 24.

Authors

Xue Yang^#^{1

2

3

4}, Qing Li^#⁵, Wenting Liu^#^{1

2}, Chen Zong^{1

2}, Lixin Wei^{1

2}, Yufang Shi^{6

7}, Zhipeng Han^{8

9}

Affiliations

¹ Department of Tumor Immunology and Gene Therapy Center, Third Affiliated Hospital of Naval Medical University, Shanghai, 200438, China.
² Key Laboratory on Signaling Regulation and Targeting Therapy of Liver Cancer, Ministry of Education, Eastern Hepatobiliary Surgery Hospital/National Center for Liver Cancer, Naval Medical University, Shanghai, 200438, China.
³ The Third Affiliated Hospital of Soochow University, Institutes for Translational Medicine, State Key Laboratory of Radiation Medicine and Protection, Key Laboratory of Stem Cells and Medical Biomaterials of Jiangsu Province, Medical College of Soochow University, Soochow University, Suzhou, 215000, China.
⁴ Department of Experimental Medicine, TOR, University of Rome Tor Vergata, 00133, Rome, Italy.
⁵ CAS Key Laboratory of Tissue Microenvironment and Tumor, Shanghai Institute of Nutrition and Health, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai, 200031, China.
⁶ The Third Affiliated Hospital of Soochow University, Institutes for Translational Medicine, State Key Laboratory of Radiation Medicine and Protection, Key Laboratory of Stem Cells and Medical Biomaterials of Jiangsu Province, Medical College of Soochow University, Soochow University, Suzhou, 215000, China. shiyufang2@gmail.com.
⁷ Department of Experimental Medicine, TOR, University of Rome Tor Vergata, 00133, Rome, Italy. shiyufang2@gmail.com.
⁸ Department of Tumor Immunology and Gene Therapy Center, Third Affiliated Hospital of Naval Medical University, Shanghai, 200438, China. hanzhipeng0311@126.com.
⁹ Key Laboratory on Signaling Regulation and Targeting Therapy of Liver Cancer, Ministry of Education, Eastern Hepatobiliary Surgery Hospital/National Center for Liver Cancer, Naval Medical University, Shanghai, 200438, China. hanzhipeng0311@126.com.

^# Contributed equally.

PMID: 36823236
PMCID: PMC10229624 (available on 2024-06-01)
DOI: 10.1038/s41423-023-00983-5

Abstract

Hepatic fibrosis/cirrhosis is a significant health burden worldwide, resulting in liver failure or hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) and accounting for many deaths each year. The pathogenesis of hepatic fibrosis/cirrhosis is very complex, which makes treatment challenging. Endogenous mesenchymal stromal cells (MSCs) have been shown to play pivotal roles in the pathogenesis of hepatic fibrosis. Paradoxically, exogenous MSCs have also been used in clinical trials for liver cirrhosis, and their effectiveness has been observed in most completed clinical trials. There are still many issues to be resolved to promote the use of MSCs in the clinic in the future. In this review, we will examine the controversial role of MSCs in the pathogenesis and treatment of hepatic fibrosis/cirrhosis. We also investigated the clinical trials involving MSCs in liver cirrhosis, summarized the parameters that need to be standardized, and discussed how to promote the use of MSCs from a clinical perspective.

Keywords: Clinical application; Hepatic fibrosis/cirrhosis; Mesenchymal stromal cells; Pathogenesis; Treatment.

Publication types

Review
Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

Carcinoma, Hepatocellular* / pathology
Fibrosis
Hepatic Stellate Cells / pathology
Humans
Liver Cirrhosis / pathology
Liver Cirrhosis / therapy
Liver Neoplasms* / pathology
Liver Neoplasms* / therapy
Mesenchymal Stem Cell Transplantation* / methods
Mesenchymal Stem Cells*