Current status and future prospects of functionalized mesenchymal stem cells for the treatment of spinal cord injury

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)

Spinal cord injury (SCI) represents a critical neurological disorder characterized by intricate pathophysiological processes. The hostile local environment induced by secondary damage markedly hinders intrinsic neural repair, and currently available therapies exhibit limited clinical effectiveness. Recently, mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) have attracted considerable attention due to their paracrine-mediated therapeutic properties, including immunoregulatory effects, neurotrophic factor secretion, and promotion of angiogenesis. Nevertheless, conventional transplantation of MSCs encounters substantial obstacles, such as poor cellular viability post-injection, inadequate homing capabilities, and diminished therapeutic outcomes in the unfavorable post-injury microenvironment. Therefore, it is essential to "functionalize" MSCs to enhance their therapeutic potential. This article systematically reviews three major MSC functionalization strategies: biomaterial-based delivery platforms, genetic engineering approaches, and drug or physical synergistic therapies. Preclinical evidence indicates that these strategies can synergistically improve motor function recovery, promote axonal regeneration and myelination, and suppress inflammatory responses. Overall, functionalized MSC therapy shows greater therapeutic promise than traditional cell transplantation. Future studies should prioritize c

Evidence level

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

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