Department of Rheumatology and Immunology, Institute of Translational Medicine, The Affiliated Drum Tower Hospital of Nanjing University Medical School, 321 Zhongshan Road, Nanjing, 210008, P. R. China.
Department of Rheumatology and Immunology, The First Affiliated Hospital of Anhui Medical University, 218 Jixi Road, Hefei, 230022, P. R. China.
Adv Sci (Weinh). 2023 Mar;10(9):e2206253. doi: 10.1002/advs.202206253. Epub 2023 Jan 22.
Due to their intrinsic anti-inflammatory and immunomodulatory properties, adipose-derived stem cells (ADSCs) are explored as a promising alternative in treating rheumatoid arthritis (RA). To address the poor survival and function loss of directly injected stem cells, efforts in this area are focus on the generation of efficient cell delivery vehicles. Herein, a novel extracellular matrix (ECM)-inspired injectable hydrogel for ADSCs encapsulation and RA treatment is proposed. The hydrogel with dendritic polylysine and polysaccharide components is formed through the reversible Schiff base crosslinking. It possesses self-healing capability, superior mechanical properties, minimal toxicity, and immunomodulatory ability. When encapsulated with ADSCs, the hydrogel could recover chronic inflammation by directly reversing the dominant macrophage phenotype from M1 to M2 and inhibiting the migration of fibroblast-like synoviocytes. Through a collagen-induced arthritis rat model, the tremendous therapeutic outcomes of this ADSCs-laden hydrogel, including inflammation attenuation, cartilage protection, and bone mineral density promotion are demonstrated. These results make the ECM-inspired hydrogel laden with ADSCs an ideal candidate for treating RA and other autoimmune disorders.
由于脂肪来源干细胞 (ADSCs) 具有内在的抗炎和免疫调节特性,因此被探索作为治疗类风湿关节炎 (RA) 的一种有前途的替代方法。为了解决直接注射干细胞的存活率和功能丧失问题,该领域的研究重点是开发有效的细胞输送载体。本研究提出了一种新型细胞外基质 (ECM) 启发的可注射水凝胶,用于封装 ADSCs 并治疗 RA。该水凝胶由树枝状多聚赖氨酸和多糖组成,通过可逆席夫碱交联形成。它具有自修复能力、优越的机械性能、低毒性和免疫调节能力。当封装 ADSCs 时,水凝胶可以通过直接将优势巨噬细胞表型从 M1 逆转到 M2 来恢复慢性炎症,并抑制成纤维样滑膜细胞的迁移。通过胶原诱导的关节炎大鼠模型,证明了这种负载 ADSCs 的水凝胶在减轻炎症、保护软骨和促进骨密度方面具有巨大的治疗效果。这些结果表明,负载 ADSCs 的 ECM 启发水凝胶是治疗 RA 和其他自身免疫性疾病的理想候选物。