Regenerative Medicine Institute, National University of Ireland Galway, Galway City, County Galway, Ireland.
Stem Cell Res Ther. 2011 Feb 18;2(1):8. doi: 10.1186/scrt49.
Mesenchymal progenitor cells, a multipotent adult stem cell population, have the ability to differentiate into cells of connective tissue lineages, including fat, cartilage, bone and muscle, and therefore generate a great deal of interest for their potential use in regenerative medicine. During development, endochondral bone is formed from a template of cartilage that transforms into bone; however, mature articular cartilage remains in the articulating joints, where its principal role is reducing friction and dispersing mechanical load. Articular cartilage is prone to damage from sports injuries or ageing, which regularly progresses to more serious joint disorders, such as osteoarthritis. Osteoarthritis is a degenerative joint disease characterized by the thinning and eventual wearing of articular cartilage, and affects millions of people worldwide. Due to low chondrocyte motility and proliferative rates, and complicated by the absence of blood vessels, cartilage has a limited ability to self-repair. Current pharmaceutical and surgical interventions fail to generate repair tissue with the mechanical and cellular properties of native host cartilage. The long-term success of cartilage repair will therefore depend on regenerative methodologies resulting in the restoration of articular cartilage that closely duplicates the native tissue. For cell-based therapies, the optimal cell source must be readily accessible with easily isolated, abundant cells capable of collagen type II and sulfated proteoglycan production in appropriate proportions. Although a cell source with these therapeutic properties remains elusive, mesenchymal chondroprogenitors retain their expansion capacity with the promise of reproducing the structural or biomechanical properties of healthy articular cartilage. As current knowledge regarding chondroprogenitors is relatively limited, this review will focus on their origin and therapeutic application.
间质祖细胞是一种多能成体干细胞，能够分化为结缔组织谱系的细胞，包括脂肪、软骨、骨和肌肉，因此在再生医学中有很大的应用潜力。在发育过程中，软骨内骨是由软骨模板形成的，软骨模板转化为骨；然而，成熟的关节软骨仍然存在于关节中，其主要作用是减少摩擦和分散机械负荷。关节软骨容易受到运动损伤或衰老的影响，这通常会导致更严重的关节疾病，如骨关节炎。骨关节炎是一种退行性关节疾病，其特征是关节软骨变薄，最终磨损，影响着全球数以百万计的人。由于软骨细胞的迁移和增殖率较低，并且由于缺乏血管，软骨自我修复的能力有限。目前的药物和手术干预措施无法产生具有天然宿主软骨机械和细胞特性的修复组织。因此，软骨修复的长期成功将取决于再生方法，这些方法能够恢复与天然组织非常相似的关节软骨。对于基于细胞的治疗方法，最佳的细胞来源必须易于获得，具有易于分离的丰富细胞，能够以适当的比例产生 II 型胶原和硫酸化蛋白聚糖。尽管具有这些治疗特性的细胞来源仍难以捉摸，但间充质软骨祖细胞保持其扩增能力，有望复制健康关节软骨的结构或生物力学特性。由于目前对软骨祖细胞的了解相对有限，本综述将重点介绍其起源和治疗应用。
