title: Nanotechnology for mesenchymal stem cell therapies.
abstract: Mesenchymal stem cells (MSC) display great proliferative, differentiative, chemotactic, and immune-modulatory properties required to promote tissue repair. Several clinical trials based on the use of MSC are currently underway for therapeutic purposes. The aim of this article is to examine the current trends and potential impact of nanotechnology in MSC-driven regenerative medicine. Nanoparticle-based approaches are used as powerful carrier systems for the targeted delivery of bioactive molecules to ensure MSC long-term maintenance in vitro and to enhance their regenerative potential. Nanostructured materials have been developed to recapitulate the stem cell niche within a tissue and to instruct MSC toward the creation of regeneration-permissive environment. Finally, the capability of MSC to migrate toward the site of injury/inflammation has allowed for the development of diagnostic imaging systems able to monitor transplanted stem cell bio-distribution, toxicity, and therapeutic effectiveness.
authors.affiliation: Department of Life and Environmental Sciences, Università Politecnica delle Marche, Via Brecce Bianche, 60131 Ancona, Italy; Department of Nanomedicine, Houston Methodist Research Institute, 6670 Bertner Ave., Houston, TX 77030, USA. Electronic address: b.corradetti@univpm.it.
authors.forename: Bruna
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Corradetti
authors.affiliation: Department of Nanomedicine, Houston Methodist Research Institute, 6670 Bertner Ave., Houston, TX 77030, USA; Department of Medicine, Weill Cornell Medical College, New York, NY 10065, USA.
authors.forename: Mauro
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Ferrari
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D002986:Clinical Trials as Topic / Q000379:methods; D006801:Humans; D007249:Inflammation / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000378:metabolism; D045164:Mesenchymal Stem Cell Transplantation / Q000379:methods* / Q000639:trends; D036103:Nanotechnology / Q000379:methods*; D044968:Regenerative Medicine / Q000379:methods* / Q000639:trends; D023822:Tissue Engineering / Q000379:methods* / Q000639:trends
keywords: Cell-therapy; Mesenchymal stem cells; Nanotechnology; Regenerative medicine; Stem cell niche; Tissue-engineering