Stem cells for treatment of liver fibrosis/cirrhosis: clinical progress and therapeutic potential

• Published in: Stem cell research & therapy Vol. 13; no. 1; pp. 1 - 356
• Main Authors: Liu, Pinyan, Mao, Yongcui, Xie, Ye, Wei, Jiayun, Yao, Jia
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: London BioMed Central Ltd 26-07-2022; BioMed Central; BMC
• Subjects: Bone marrow; Care and treatment; Cell therapy; Cirrhosis; Clinical trials; Extracellular matrix; Fibrosis; Health aspects; Hepatocytes; Immunoregulation; Liver; Liver cancer; Liver cirrhosis; Liver diseases; Liver fibrosis/cirrhosis; Mechanism; Metabolism; Molecular modelling; Review; Stem cells; Transplantation; Umbilical cord
• ISSN: 1757-6512; 1757-6512
• DOI: 10.1186/s13287-022-03041-5

Cost-effective treatment strategies for liver fibrosis or cirrhosis are limited. Many clinical trials of stem cells for liver disease shown that stem cells might be a potential therapeutic approach. This review will summarize the published clinical trials of stem cells for the treatment of liver fibrosis/cirrhosis and provide the latest overview of various cell sources, cell doses, and delivery methods. We also describe the limitations and strengths of various stem cells in clinical applications. Furthermore, to clarify how stem cells play a therapeutic role in liver fibrosis, we discuss the molecular mechanisms of stem cells for treatment of liver fibrosis, including liver regeneration, immunoregulation, resistance to injury, myofibroblast repression, and extracellular matrix degradation. We provide a perspective for the prospects of future clinical implementation of stem cells.