HUMAN ADIPOSE-DERIVED STEM CELLS FOR CELL-BASED THERAPIES IN THE TREATMENT OF SYSTEMIC SCLEROSIS

ABSTRACTThe present study was designed to evaluate the clinical outcome of cell-based therapy with cultured adipose-derived stromal cells(ASCs) for the treatment of cutaneous manifestations in patients affected by systemic sclerosis (SSc). ASCs have an extraordinary developmentalplasticity, including the ability to undergo multilineage differentiation and self-renewal. Moreover, ASCs can be easily harvested from small volumes of liposuction aspirate, showing great in vitro viability and proliferation rate. Here we isolated, characterized and expandedASCs, assessing both their mesenchymal origin and their capability to differentiate towards the adipogenic, osteogenic, and chondrogenic lineage. We developed an effective method for ASCs transplantation into sclerodermic patients by means of a hyaluronic acid (HA) solution,which allowed us to achieve precise structural modifications. ASCs were isolated from subcutaneous adipose tissue of six sclerodermic patients and cultured in chemical defined medium before autologous transplantation to restore skin sequelae. The results indicated thattransplantation of a combination of ASCs in HA solution determined a significant improvement in tightening of the skin without complications such as anechoic areas, fat necrosis or infections, thus suggesting that ASCs are a potentially valuable source of cells forskin therapy in rare disease such as SSc and generally in skin disorders.