Engineered mesenchymal stem cells for targeting solid tumors: Therapeutic potential beyond regenerative therapy

Shen Cheng, Susheel Kumar Nethi, Sneha Rathi, Buddhadev Layek, Swayam Prabha

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

53 Scopus citations

Abstract

Mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) have previously demonstrated considerable promise in regenerative medicine based on their ability to proliferate and differentiate into cells of different lineages. More recently, there has been a significant interest in using MSCs as cellular vehicles for targeted cancer therapy by exploiting their tumor homing properties. Initial studies focused on using genetically modified MSCs for targeted delivery of various proapoptotic, antiangiogenic, and therapeutic proteins to a wide variety of tumors. However, their use as drug delivery vehicles has been limited by poor drug load capacity. This review discusses various strategies for the nongenetic modification of MSCs that allows their use in tumor-targeted delivery of small molecule chemotherapeutic agents. SIGNIFICANCE STATEMENT: There has been considerable interest in exploiting the tumor homing potential of MSCs to develop them as a vehicle for the targeted delivery of cytotoxic agents to tumor tissue. The inherent tumor-tropic and drug-resistant properties make MSCs ideal carriers for toxic payload. While significant progress has been made in the area of the genetic modification of MSCs, studies focused on identification of molecular mechanisms that contribute to the tumor tropism along with optimization of the engineering conditions can further improve their effectiveness as drug delivery vehicles.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Pages (from-to)231-241
Number of pages11
JournalJournal of Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics
Volume370
Issue number2
DOIs
StatePublished - Jun 7 2019

Bibliographical note

Funding Information:
This work was supported by funding received from the Minnesota Ovarian Cancer Alliance, Betty and Terry Noble Gift for Ovarian Cancer Research, and National Institutes of Health [Grant No. R01EB022558] (to S.P). https://doi.org/10.1124/jpet.119.259796.

Funding Information:
This work was supported by funding received from the Minnesota Ovarian Cancer Alliance, Betty and Terry Noble Gift for Ovarian Cancer Research, and National Institutes of Health [Grant No. R01EB022558] (to S.P).

Publisher Copyright:
Copyright © 2019 by The American Society for Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics

Keywords

  • Animals
  • Cell Engineering
  • Cell- and Tissue-Based Therapy/methods
  • Humans
  • Mesenchymal Stem Cells/cytology
  • Neoplasms/pathology
  • Translational Medical Research

PubMed: MeSH publication types

  • Review
  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't
  • Journal Article
  • Research Support, N.I.H., Extramural

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