Mesenchymal stem cell therapies evidence in the treatment of irradiated salivary glands: A scoping review

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)

Background Radiotherapy is one of the main treatments for head and neck cancer; however, due to its non-selectivity the glandular tissue can be affected. This scoping review aimed to identify the evidence about mesenchymal stem cell therapies for irradiated salivary gland regeneration. Material and methods Two independent reviewers performed a literature search in MEDLINE/PubMed, Scopus, and Web of Science. The inclusion criteria were: 1) studies evaluation regeneration of irradiated salivary glands by stem cell therapies (cell-based or cell-free), (2) in vivo studies. Results The search resulted in 13 included studies. In general, both therapies demonstrated increased salivary levels, with mucin and amylase increased and structural protection of acinar cells. The cell-free therapy based on labial glands stem cell extract demonstrated a higher number of parasympathetic nerves. Conclusions Stem cell therapies (cell-free and cell-based) appear promising strategies for recovering saliva production in patients presenting irradiation-induced hyposalivation, with positive results toward regeneration of the form and function of the glands. However, due to the scarcity and heterogenicity of these pre-clinical studies, it is not possible to indicate which is the more indicated therapy. Key words: Mesenchymal stem cells, extracellular vesicles, exosomes, salivary glands, stem cell biolog

Evidence level

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

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