Human umbilical cord mesenchymal stem cells as cell carriers in the treatment of gliomas: research status and prospects

Abstract

Human umbilical cord mesenchymal stem cells (HuMSCs) have the multi-differentiation potential to differentiate into various types of cells without immune rejection. They are considered to be an ideal source of neural stem cells and also an ideal cell carrier for gene therapy. Because of the invasive growth of brain gliomas, most of them have no obvious boundaries with normal brain tissues. It is difficult to completely remove them by surgery and the remaining cells become the main source of tumor recurrence. In recent years, gene therapy has become a new method for the treatment of gliomas. The vector carrying the target gene is introduced into HuMSCs in a certain way to correct gene defects or play other roles. The differentiation potential of HuMSCs makes it an ideal source of nerve cells to play a greater role in gene therapy of glioma. Therefore, this article reviews the current status and prospects of HuMSCs as cell carriers in the treatment of glioma.

Keywords

human umbilical cord mesenchymal stem cells (HuMSCs) / glioma / cell carrier / gene therapy / targeted therapy