Intravenous administration of anti-inflammatory mesenchymal stem cell spheroids reduces chronic alcohol intake and abolishes binge-drinking

Sci Rep. 2018 Mar 22;8(1):4325. doi: 10.1038/s41598-018-22750-7.

Abstract

Chronic alcohol intake leads to neuroinflammation and astrocyte dysfunction, proposed to perpetuate alcohol consumption and to promote conditioned relapse-like binge drinking. In the present study, human mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) were cultured in 3D-conditions to generate MSC-spheroids, which greatly increased MSCs anti-inflammatory ability and reduced cell volume by 90% versus conventionally 2D-cultured MSCs, enabling their intravenous administration and access to the brain. It is shown, in an animal model of chronic ethanol intake and relapse-drinking, that both the intravenous and intra-cerebroventricular administration of a single dose of MSC-spheroids inhibited chronic ethanol intake and relapse-like drinking by 80-90%, displaying significant effects over 3-5 weeks. The MSC-spheroid administration fully normalized alcohol-induced neuroinflammation, as shown by a reduced astrocyte activation, and markedly increased the levels of the astrocyte Na-glutamate (GLT-1) transporter. This research suggests that the intravenous administration of MSC-spheroids may constitute an effective new approach for the treatment of alcohol-use disorders.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Administration, Intravenous
  • Alcohol Drinking / therapy*
  • Alcoholism / therapy*
  • Analysis of Variance
  • Animals
  • Astrocytes / metabolism
  • Binge Drinking / therapy*
  • Chemokine CCL2 / metabolism
  • Disease Models, Animal
  • Excitatory Amino Acid Transporter 2 / metabolism
  • Female
  • Humans
  • Infusions, Intraventricular
  • Mesenchymal Stem Cell Transplantation / adverse effects*
  • Mesenchymal Stem Cells / metabolism
  • Rats
  • Rats, Wistar
  • Recurrence
  • Spheroids, Cellular / metabolism
  • Spheroids, Cellular / transplantation*
  • Subcutaneous Fat / cytology

Substances

  • Ccl2 protein, rat
  • Chemokine CCL2
  • Excitatory Amino Acid Transporter 2
  • Slc1a2 protein, rat