Year: 2010
Type: dissertation
Abstract: This thesis focuses on the characterization of the biological and functional properties of human mesenchymal stromal cells (MSCs), isolated from different tissue sources. The differentiation capacity of MSCs from fetal and adult tissues has been tested and compared. Umbilical cord blood (UCB) has been investigated as a potential novel source of MSCs for clinical application and the immunomodulatory properties of UCB-derived MSCs have been characterized in comparison with those of MSCs of bone marrow (BM) origin. Moreover, it has been attempted to optimize the experimental conditions for MSC ex vivo expansion. Alternative culture methods, devoid of animal proteins, have been applied by introducing expansion procedures based on platelet-derived growth factors. The potential susceptibility of MSCs to undergo malignant transformation after long-term in vitro culture has been investigated and discussed in view of their clinical application, especially in immunocompromised hosts. The role of MSC therapy in the context of hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT) has been explored, focusing in particular on the co-transplantation of MSCs to promote engraftment of hematopoietic progenitors, and on the administration of MSCs for the treatment of steroid-resistant, severe acute graft-versus-host disease (GvHD). The role of MSCs in the treatment of inflammatory bowel diseases refractory to conventional therapies, as well as the concept for treating refractory autoimmune diseases has been discussed.
Author: Maria Ester Bernardo
Language: English
Subfield: Cell Biology
Domain: Life Sciences
Open Access status: green
Funders: Fondazione IRCCS Policlinico San Matteo, Compagnia di San Paolo, European Commission, Cancerfonden, Fondazione Cariplo, Ministero della Salute, Ministero dell’Istruzione, dell’Università e della Ricerca, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Karolinska Institutet, Vetenskapsrådet, Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche, Associazione Italiana per la Ricerca sul Cancro, Cancerföreningen i Stockholm, Regione Liguria, Regione Lombardia, Ministero dell'Università e della Ricerca, Alleanza Contro il Cancro
OpenAlex ID: W1490659119