Rosalind Franklin Society Proudly Announces the 2022 Award Recipient for Advances in Wound Care

Significance: Given their capacity for self-renewal, multilineage differentiation, and immunomodulatory potential, mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) represent a promising modality of clinical therapy for both regenerative medicine and immune diseases. In this study, we review the key approaches and popular methods utilized to boost potency and modify functions of MSCs for clinical purposes as well as their associated limitations. Recent Advances: Several major domains of cell modification strategies are currently employed by investigators to overcome these deficits and augment the therapeutic potential of MSCs. Priming MSCs with soluble factors or pharmacologic agents as well as manipulating oxygen availability in culture have been demonstrated to be effective biochemical methods to augment MSC potential. Distinct genetic epigenetic methods have emerged in recent years to modify the genetic expression of target proteins and factors thereby modulating MSCs capacity for differentiation, migration, and proliferation. Physical methods utilizing three culture methods and alternative cell and dimensional delivery systems and scaffolds can be used to recapitulate the native MSC niche and augment their engraftment and viability for in vivo models.