Human umbilical cord blood mesenchymal stem cells as a potential therapy for schistosomal hepatic fibrosis: an experimental study

ABSTRACT

The objective of our study was to assess the effect of human umbilical cord blood (HUCB) mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) transplantation on schistosomal hepatic fibrosis in mice. The study animals were divided into three groups. Group I is a control group, where the mice were infected with Schistosoma mansoni cercariae and remained untreated. The mice of the other two groups were infected and treated with either praziquantel (Group II) or HUCB-MSCs (Group III). Liver function tests, as well as histopathological evaluation of liver fibrosis using hematoxylin and eosin and Masson's trichrome stains, were performed. Additionally, an immunohistochemical study was carried out using anti-glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP) in hepatic stellate cells. Compared to the control group, the treated (praziquantel and MSCs) groups showed a substantial improvement, with a significant difference regarding the histopathological evaluation of liver fibrosis in the MSCs-treated group. In conclusion, MSCs could be a promising and efficient cell therapy for liver fibrosis.

KEYWORDS:

• Liver fibrosis
• mesenchymal stem cells
• praziquantel
• schistosomiasis
• glial fibrillary acidic protein

Acknowledgments

Special thanks to Tanta University that provided the complete fund for the present study.

Data availability

The authors confirm that the data supporting the findings of this study are available within the article.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Future recommendation

Further mechanisms underlying MSC-mediated hepatic repair will be studied in the future. In addition, the synergistic effect of the combined use of PZQ and MSCs in schistosomiasis should be elucidated. Indeed, further clinical studies are expeditiously recommended to establish the optimal dose, frequency, and route of administration of this treatment in order to achieve the best results, as well as to identify any potential limitations that may preclude the application of this novel therapy in humans.

Ethics approval

This study was approved by the Ethics Committee of the Faculty of Medicine, Tanta University, Tanta, Egypt. All institutional and national guidelines for the care and use of laboratory animals were followed. All procedures followed were in accordance with the Helsinki Declaration of 1975.

Correction Statement

This article has been republished with minor changes. These changes do not impact the academic content of the article.

Additional information

Funding

This research was funded by the Tanta University Research Project Unit.