Mitochondria and pluripotency: from established models to emerging roles in adult stem cells
Labusca L., Zara-Danceanu CM.
Narrative Review, published in Front Bioeng Biotechnol (2025) — summary generated from the PubMed abstract.
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
This page is generated from the PubMed record. The Thai description is an automated summary of bibliographic fields and the abstract, not a full translation, and is not medical advice.
- Study type
- Narrative Review
- Journal
- Front Bioeng Biotechnol (2025)
- Reported sample size
- —
- Source database
- Europe PMC
- PMID
- 40969230
- PMCID
- PMC12441171
- DOI
- 10.3389/fbioe.2025.1654593
- Citations
- 2
Abstract (original English)
Pluripotency, once considered an exclusive attribute of early embryonic cells, is increasingly recognized in certain adult tissue-derived stem cell populations, challenging traditional developmental paradigms. Recent findings highlight mitochondria as key regulators of cellular identity, integrating metabolic status, redox signaling, and epigenetic cues to influence stemness and differentiation. This review synthesizes current knowledge on mitochondrial features (from morphology, dynamics, to bioenergetics and correlation to cellular epigenetic status) in pluripotent stem cells (ESCs and iPSCs) as well as in multipotent adult tissue stem cells (ASC) emphasizing transitions between glycolytic and oxidative metabolism during reprogramming and lineage specification. Particular attention is given to existing evidence on adult pluripotent-like stem cells, including VSELs, MAPCs, MUSE cells, MIAMI, and DFATs, which remain incompletely characterized but demonstrate promising regenerative capacities. While direct data on mitochondrial behavior in these cells are sparse, parallels with multipotent adult stem cells as well as with ESC and IPSCs suggest a model wherein stress-induced bioenergetic shifts, ROS signaling, and mitochondrial remodeling act as modulators of latent pluripotency. Understanding these mechanisms could offer insights on adult pluripotent stem cell role in orchestrat
What this study does not prove
- • This study does not prove SVF is an approved treatment or a replacement for standard care.
- • This is a narrative review: it collects no new patient data and does not systematically appraise evidence quality.
Evidence level
Evidence from laboratory and animal studies provides groundwork for understanding mechanisms and potential before human studies continue.
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