Abstract
The Rosalind Franklin Society (RFS), in partnership with Mary Ann Liebert, Inc., publishers, enthusiastically congratulate our distinguished recipient of the 2022 annual
Carlos Theodore Huerta, Yulexi Y. Ortiz, Zhao-Jun Liu, and Omaida C. Velazquez, “Methods and Limitations of Augmenting Mesenchymal Stem Cells for Therapeutic Applications,” Advances in Wound Care (December 2022),
Abstract
Significance: Given their capacity for self-renewal, multilineage differentiation, and immunomodulatory potential, mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) represent a promising modality of clinical therapy for both regenerative medicine and immune diseases. In this study, we review the key approaches and popular methods utilized to boost potency and modify functions of MSCs for clinical purposes as well as their associated limitations.
Recent Advances: Several major domains of cell modification strategies are currently employed by investigators to overcome these deficits and augment the therapeutic potential of MSCs. Priming MSCs with soluble factors or pharmacologic agents as well as manipulating oxygen availability in culture have been demonstrated to be effective biochemical methods to augment MSC potential. Distinct genetic and epigenetic methods have emerged in recent years to modify the genetic expression of target proteins and factors thereby modulating MSCs capacity for differentiation, migration, and proliferation. Physical methods utilizing three-dimensional culture methods and alternative cell delivery systems and scaffolds can be used to recapitulate the native MSC niche and augment their engraftment and viability for in vivo models.
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Omaida C. Velazquez, MD, FACS, is a professor and chair at the DeWitt Daughtry Family Department of Surgery, and the University of Miami Leonard M. Miller School of Medicine. She is also surgeon-in-chief at the University of Miami Health System (UHealth) and Jackson Health System, and the David Kimmelman Endowed Chair in vascular and endovascular surgery, University of Miami.
Dr. Velazquez is a nationally and internationally renowned surgeon-scientist, recognized within her field and the broader community of physician scientists, as seen by her induction into the American Society for Clinical Investigators. Her seminal contributions in preclinical and clinical research are numerous. Her preclinical research centers on stem cells and angiogenesis, wound healing, atherosclerosis, critical limb ischemia, and limb salvage, all related to peripheral vascular disease and vascular complications of diabetes.