The Application of Mesenchymal Stromal Cells and Their Homing Capabilities to Regenerate the Intervertebral Disc

Evidence from laboratory and animal studies provides groundwork for understanding mechanisms and potential before human studies continue.

• Level A · Stronger Clinical Evidence
• Level B · Emerging clinical evidence with positive signals
• Level C · Early human research exploring benefits
• Level D · Scientific groundwork from lab and animal studies
• Emerging · Emerging topic under active research

Abstract (original English)

Chronic low back pain (LBP) remains a challenging condition to treat, and especially to cure. If conservative treatment approaches fail, the current "gold standard" for intervertebral disc degeneration (IDD)-provoked back pain is spinal fusion. However, due to its invasive and destructive nature, the focus of orthopedic research related to the intervertebral disc (IVD) has shifted more towards cell-based therapeutic approaches. They aim to reduce or even reverse the degenerative cascade by mimicking the human body's physiological healing system. The implementation of progenitor and/or stem cells and, in particular, the delivery of mesenchymal stromal cells (MSCs) has revealed significant potential to cure the degenerated/injured IVD. Over the past decade, many research groups have invested efforts to find ways to utilize these cells as efficiently and sustainably as possible. This narrative literature review presents a summary of achievements made with the application of MSCs for the regeneration of the IVD in recent years, including their preclinical and clinical applications. Moreover, this review presents state-of-the-art strategies on how the homing capabilities of MSCs can be utilized to repair damaged or degenerated IVDs, as well as their current limitations and future perspectives.

Evidence level

Evidence from laboratory and animal studies provides groundwork for understanding mechanisms and potential before human studies continue.

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