Pommey Sandra, Galipeau Jacques
Institut Lady Davis pour la recherche médicale de l'hôpital général juif, Sir Mortimer B. Davis de Montréal, université McGill, 3755 chemin Côte Sainte-Catherine, Montréal, QC, Canada, H3T 1E2.
Bull Cancer. 2006 Sep;93(9):901-7.
The unique properties of stem cells are opening the door for the development of new therapeutic approaches notably in oncology and regenerative medicine. Embryonic stem cells are theoretically very promising for that purpose. However, autologous stem cells derived from blood and bone marrow are the ones which have been tested in clinical trials. Amongst these, adult mesenchymal stromal cells (MSCs) possess particularly attracting properties, as they are easily expanded in vitro and possess the potential to differentiate into multiple cell lineages. Moreover, MSCs can be genetically modified and utilized as a biopharmaceutical. Several research groups are currently investigating both the fundamental properties of MSCs and applicable therapies derived from their use, particularly in cardiology but also in cancer and immunomodulation. Recently, we described that under appropriate stimulation, MSCs can behave as potent antigen-presenting cells (APCs) which is of interest in our understanding of hematopoietic system immunobiology. In addition, the antigen-presenting functions of MSC could theoretically be exploited as a new therapeutic tool in cancer therapy in order to amplify immune responses against tumor-specific antigens. In addition, genetically-modified MSCs are widely tested in preclinical studies and we will here present our results regarding IL2-producing MSCs as an anticancer agent. In Canada, the activities within the field of progenitor and stem cell therapeutics has been consolidated within the National Canadian Stem Cell Network which groups researchers, clinicians, engineers and ethicists, all dedicated to study this new promising pharmaceutical avenue.
干细胞的独特特性为新治疗方法的开发打开了大门，尤其是在肿瘤学和再生医学领域。胚胎干细胞在理论上对此目的非常有前景。然而，源自血液和骨髓的自体干细胞是那些已在临床试验中进行测试的细胞。其中，成人间充质基质细胞（MSC）具有特别吸引人的特性，因为它们易于在体外扩增，并具有分化为多种细胞谱系的潜力。此外，MSC可以进行基因改造并用作生物药物。目前，几个研究小组正在研究MSC的基本特性以及源自其用途的适用疗法，特别是在心脏病学领域，但也涉及癌症和免疫调节。最近，我们描述了在适当刺激下，MSC可以表现为有效的抗原呈递细胞（APC），这在我们对造血系统免疫生物学的理解中具有重要意义。此外，MSC的抗原呈递功能理论上可以作为癌症治疗中的一种新治疗工具加以利用，以增强针对肿瘤特异性抗原的免疫反应。此外，基因改造的MSC在临床前研究中得到广泛测试，我们将在此展示我们关于产生IL2的MSC作为抗癌剂的研究结果。在加拿大，祖细胞和干细胞治疗领域的活动已在加拿大国家干细胞网络中得到整合，该网络汇聚了研究人员、临床医生、工程师和伦理学家，他们都致力于研究这一充满希望的新药物途径。
