School of Life and Pharmaceutical Sciences, Dalian University of Technology, Panjin, China.
School of Life and Pharmaceutical Sciences, Dalian University of Technology, Panjin, China.
Biochem Biophys Res Commun. 2021 Jan 15;536:88-94. doi: 10.1016/j.bbrc.2020.12.057. Epub 2020 Dec 25.
Tendon stem cells (TSCs) are a kind of progenitor cells found in tendon niches, which play a key role in the repair of tendon injuries. Exosomes that mediate cell communication are involved in physiological processes and various diseases, while the effect of exosomes derived from TSCs (TSC-exo) on TSCs is still unclear. The purpose of this study is to explore the effect of TSC-exo on TSCs. Analyzing the characteristics of TSC-exo, we found that the TSC-exo were enriched in a large amount of transforming growth factor β (TGF β) by western blotting. We also found that the TGF β carried by TSC-exo can effectively accelerate the proliferation and migration of TSCs. We further found that TGF β carried by TSC-exo can activate the TGF β-Smad2/3 and the ERK1/2 signaling pathway in TSCs. Furthermore, matrix metalloenzyme 2 (MMP2), a downstream molecule of Smad2, is regulated by TGF β carried by TSC-exo. Collectively, our findings provide molecular insights into TSC-exo and indicate that TSC-exo are a potential strategy for treating tendon injuries.
肌腱干细胞（TSCs）是一种存在于肌腱龛中的祖细胞，在肌腱损伤的修复中起着关键作用。介导细胞通讯的外泌体参与生理过程和各种疾病，而 TSCs 来源的外泌体（TSC-exo）对 TSCs 的影响尚不清楚。本研究旨在探讨 TSC-exo 对 TSCs 的作用。通过分析 TSC-exo 的特征，我们发现 TSC-exo 通过 Western blot 富集了大量转化生长因子β（TGF β）。我们还发现 TSC-exo 携带的 TGF β 可以有效促进 TSCs 的增殖和迁移。我们进一步发现，TSC-exo 携带的 TGF β 可以激活 TSCs 中的 TGF β-Smad2/3 和 ERK1/2 信号通路。此外，Smad2 下游分子基质金属蛋白酶 2（MMP2）受到 TSC-exo 携带的 TGF β 的调节。综上所述，我们的研究结果为 TSC-exo 提供了分子见解，并表明 TSC-exo 是治疗肌腱损伤的一种有潜力的策略。
