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Review
. 2021 Oct 26;10(11):2887.
doi: 10.3390/cells10112887.

Mesenchymal Stem Cell-Derived Extracellular Vesicles for Osteoarthritis Treatment: Extracellular Matrix Protection, Chondrocyte and Osteocyte Physiology, Pain and Inflammation Management

Thu Huyen Nguyen  1   2 , Chau Minh Duong  2   3 , Xuan-Hung Nguyen  2   4   5 , Uyen Thi Trang Than  2   4
Affiliations
Review

Mesenchymal Stem Cell-Derived Extracellular Vesicles for Osteoarthritis Treatment: Extracellular Matrix Protection, Chondrocyte and Osteocyte Physiology, Pain and Inflammation Management

Thu Huyen Nguyen et al. Cells. .

Abstract

Osteoarthritis (OA) is a common degenerative disease that can lead to persistent pain and motion restriction. In the last decade, stem cells, particularly mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs), have been explored as a potential alternative OA therapy due to their regenerative capacity. Furthermore, it has been shown that trophic factors enveloped in extracellular vesicles (EVs), including exosomes, are a crucial aspect of MSC-based treatment for OA. Evidently, EVs derived from different MSC sources might rescue the OA phenotype by targeting many biological processes associated with cartilage extracellular matrix (ECM) degradation and exerting protective effects on different joint cell types. Despite this advancement, different studies employing EV treatment for OA have revealed reverse outcomes depending on the EV cargo, cell source, and pathological condition. Hence, in this review, we aim to summarize and discuss the possible effects of MSC-derived EVs based on recent findings at different stages of OA development, including effects on cartilage ECM, chondrocyte biology, osteocytes and bone homeostasis, inflammation, and pain management. Additionally, we discuss further strategies and technical advances for manipulating EVs to specifically target OA to bring the therapy closer to clinical use.

Keywords: bone homeostasis; chondrocytes; extracellular vesicles; inflammation; mesenchymal stem cells; osteoarthritis.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Influences of exosomal microRNAs and long noncoding RNAs on different biological activities of osteoarthritis.
Figure 2
Figure 2
The mechanism by which exosomes promote osteoarthritis recovery through modulating inflammatory responses.
Figure 3
Figure 3
Strategies to enrich drug molecules into EVs include (A) the direct incubation of drugs with exosomes/EVs and (B) the indirect approach of inserting molecules into secreting cells that will release exosomes/EVs with more of the inserted factor.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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