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Review
. 2022 Nov 23;23(23):14597.
doi: 10.3390/ijms232314597.

Perinatal Stem Cell Therapy to Treat Type 1 Diabetes Mellitus: A Never-Say-Die Story of Differentiation and Immunomodulation

Francesca Paris  1 , Valeria Pizzuti  1 , Pasquale Marrazzo  1 , Andrea Pession  2 , Francesco Alviano  1 , Laura Bonsi  1
Affiliations
Review

Perinatal Stem Cell Therapy to Treat Type 1 Diabetes Mellitus: A Never-Say-Die Story of Differentiation and Immunomodulation

Francesca Paris et al. Int J Mol Sci. .

Abstract

Human term placenta and other postpartum-derived biological tissues are promising sources of perinatal cells with unique stem cell properties. Among the massive current research on stem cells, one medical focus on easily available stem cells is to exploit them in the design of immunotherapy protocols, in particular for the treatment of chronic non-curable human diseases. Type 1 diabetes is characterized by autoimmune destruction of pancreatic beta cells and perinatal cells can be harnessed both to generate insulin-producing cells for beta cell replenishment and to regulate autoimmune mechanisms via immunomodulation capacity. In this study, the strong points of cells derived from amniotic epithelial cells and from umbilical cord matrix are outlined and their potential for supporting cell therapy development. From a basic research and expert stem cell point of view, the aim of this review is to summarize information regarding the regenerative medicine field, as well as describe the state of the art on possible cell therapy approaches for diabetes.

Keywords: Wharton’s jelly; amniotic epithelial cells; amniotic membrane; cell therapy; diabetes; perinatal cells; placenta stem cells; regenerative medicine; umbilical cord.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflict of interest. The funders had no role in the design of the study; in the collection, analyses, or interpretation of data; in the writing of the manuscript; or in the decision to publish the results.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
The double ability of perinatal cells in sustaining anti-diabetes cell therapy strategies. One activity of perinatal cells is to promote anti-inflammatory effects and to regulate pro-inflammatory response, both by using their own secretome and by interacting with different immune cells. In addition, the cell ability to differentiate, particularly into the endoderm lineage, makes perinatal cells ready to be exploited during directed or induced differentiation towards beta cell commitment, pre-transplantation or post-transplantation. The limiting activity on patient auto-immune response and the new production and release of insulin in vivo are expected to be one of the chief challenges in regenerative medicine for diabetes treatment.
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Grants and funding

This work was supported by the Associazione Giovani Diabetici AGD BOLOGNA.