Therapeutic effect of adipose-derived mesenchymal stem cells (AD-MSCs) compared to pirfenidone on corticosteroid resistance in a mouse model of acute exacerbation of idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis
Heba Fikry1, Lobna A. Saleh2 and Sara Abdel Gawad1
1Department of Histology and Cell Biology, Faculty of Medicine, Ain Shams University and
2Department of Clinical Pharmacology, Faculty of Medicine, Ain Shams University, Cairo, Egypt
Corresponding Author: Heba Fikry, MD, Assistant Professor, Department of Histology and Cell Biology, Faculty of Medicine, Ain Shams University, Cairo, Egypt. e-mail: hebafikry@med.asu.edu.eg
Summary. Introduction. Acute exacerbation-idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (AE-IPF) is a life-threatening condition. In the treatment of AE-IPF, corticosteroid medication is commonly utilized. However, there is insufficient evidence to justify its usage. Pirfenidone (PFD) has recently been discovered to be effective in the treatment of AE-IPF patients. However, regenerative therapy, such as stem cell therapy or tissue engineering, is necessary due to ineffective and limited therapies. Combining MSC transplantation with pharmacological therapy may also give additional benefits; nevertheless, its use must be proven experimentally. As a result, the goal of this study was to assess the therapeutic effects of adipose-derived mesenchymal stem cells (AD-MSCs) on corticosteroid resistance in an animal model of AE-IPF caused by bleomycin compared to PFD.
Materials and methods. Seventy C57BL/6J male mice were randomly divided into seven groups, control, BLM, methylprednisolone (MP), PFD, AD-MSCs, PFD +MP, and AD-MSCs +MP.
Results. In terms of survival, collagen deposition, the acute lung injury score (ALI), and the Ashcroft score, AD-MSCs exceeded PFD. AD-MSCs + MP provided protection and preserved the lung's architecture in BLM-induced AE. In addition, AD-MSCs successfully decreased chemokine (CC motif) ligand-2 (CCL2) positive cells and lower pro-fibrotic and pro-inflammatory cytokines.
Conclusions. AD-MSCs enhanced histological structure, Ashcroft and ALI scores, lung collagen deposition, survival, and cytokines in an animal model of AE-IPF. As a result, we believe that AD-MSCs may be more therapeutically helpful for AE-IPF than presently available therapies, either alone or in conjunction with MP. Histol Histopathol 37, 1065-1083 (2022)
Key words: Acute exacerbation, Idiopathic Pulmonary Fibrosis, Adipose-derived mesenchymal stem cells, Pirfenidone, Bleomycin, Corticosteroids
DOI: 10.14670/HH-18-493
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©The Author(s) 2022. Open Access. This article is licensed under a Creative Commons CC-BY International License. |
