Are bone marrow mononuclear cells effective in reducing hepatic lesions?

Liver fibrosis occurs in the setting of chronic injury caused by different etiologies constituting a serious worldwide public health problem. In addition to schistosomiasis, hepatopathies due to alcohol, viral hepatitis, drugs, metabolic and autoimmune diseases, and congenital abnormalities are important causes of liver fibrosis. New therapeutic strategies aiming to minimize damages caused by hepatic fibrogenesis in chronic liver diseases are of great interest. Adult bone marrow contains pluripotent stem cells with the ability to differentiate into diverse cell types, including hepatocytes. The regenerative potential of bone marrow stem cells has been tested in experimental models of hepatic injury, demonstrating the ability of bone marrow cells (BMCs) to generate hepatocytes under tissue stress in mice and human.

A research team leaded by Milena Botelho Pereira Soares from Brazil investigated the potential of syngeneic bone marrow mononuclear cells in the modulation of fibrosis, albumin expression and cellular alterations. This will be published on October 14, 2008 in the World Journal of Gastroenterology

They found that Transplanted GFP+ cells migrated to granuloma areas and reduced the percentage of liver fibrosis. The presence of donor-derived cells was confirmed by Fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) analysis for detection of cells bearing Y chromosome and by PCR analysis for detection of GFP DNA. The levels of TGF-beta, a cytokine associated with fibrosis deposition, in liver fragments of mice submitted to therapy were reduced. The number of oval cells in liver sections of S.mansoni -infected mice increased 3-4 fold after transplantation. A partial recovery in albumin expression, which is decreased upon infection with S.mansoni, was found in livers of infected mice after cellular therapy.

They concluded that transplantation of BMCs in mice with chronic liver disease caused by S.mansoni infection decreased liver fibrosis and contributed to an increase in precursor cells as well as to the generation of new hepatocytes and/or to the improvement of the function of resident hepatocytes. Although there are still many unanswered questions regarding the mechanisms of action of transplanted cells in hepatic lesions, their results reinforce the use of cell-based therapies for patients with chronic liver diseases

Reference: Oliveira SA, Souza BSF, Guimarães-Ferreira CA, Barreto ES, Souza SC, Freitas LAR, Ribeiro-dos-Santos R, Soares MBP. Therapy with bone marrow cells reduces liver alterations in mice chronically infected by Schistosoma mansoni. World J Gastroenterol 2008; 14(38): 5842-5850 http://www.wjgnet.com/1007-9327/14/5842.asp

Correspondence to: Milena Botelho Pereira Soares, PhD, Centro de Pesquisas Gonçalo Moniz, Fundação Oswaldo Cruz, Rua Waldemar Falcão 121, Brotas, Salvador 40295-001, BA, Brazil. milena@bahia.fiocruz.br Telephone: +55-71-31762260 Fax: +55-71-31762292

World Journal of Gastroenterology (WJG), a leading international journal in gastroenterology and hepatology, has established a reputation for publishing first class research on esophageal cancer, gastric cancer, liver cancer, viral hepatitis, colorectal cancer, and H pylori infection and provides a forum for both clinicians and scientists. WJG has been indexed and abstracted in Current Contents/Clinical Medicine, Science Citation Index Expanded (also known as SciSearch) and Journal Citation Reports/Science Edition, Index Medicus, MEDLINE and PubMed, Chemical Abstracts, EMBASE/Excerpta Medica, Abstracts Journals, Nature Clinical Practice Gastroenterology and Hepatology, CAB Abstracts and Global Health. ISI JCR 2003-2000 IF: 3.318, 2.532, 1.445 and 0.993. WJG is a weekly journal published by WJG Press. The publication dates are the 7th, 14th, 21st, and 28th day of every month. WJG is supported by The National Natural Science Foundation of China, No. 30224801 and No. 30424812, and was founded with the name of China National Journal of New Gastroenterology on October 1, 1995, and renamed WJG on January 25, 1998.

The WJG Press mainly publishes World Journal of Gastroenterology.