title: Age-associated changes in the ecological niche: implications for mesenchymal stem cell aging.
abstract: Adult stem cells are critical for organ-specific regeneration and self-renewal with advancing age. The prospect of being able to reverse tissue-specific post-injury sequelae by harvesting, culturing and transplanting a patient's own stem and progenitor cells is exciting. Mesenchymal stem cells have emerged as a reliable stem cell source for this treatment modality and are currently being tested in numerous ongoing clinical trials. Unfortunately, the fervor over mesenchymal stem cells is mitigated by several lines of evidence suggesting that their efficacy is limited by natural aging. This article discusses the mechanisms and manifestations of age-associated deficiencies in mesenchymal stem cell efficacy. A consideration of recent experimental findings suggests that the ecological niche might be responsible for mesenchymal stem cell aging.
authors.forename: Faizal Z
authors.initials: FZ
authors.lastname: Asumda
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D002454:Cell Differentiation; D016922:Cellular Senescence; D004249:DNA Damage; D006801:Humans; D059630:Mesenchymal Stem Cells / Q000166:cytology* / Q000378:metabolism; D019899:Paracrine Communication; D019098:Telomerase / Q000378:metabolism; D014157:Transcription Factors / Q000378:metabolism
chemical_list: D014157:Transcription Factors; D019098:Telomerase