title: Stem Cell-Based Therapies for Ischemic Stroke: Preclinical Results and the Potential of Imaging-Assisted Evaluation of Donor Cell Fate and Mechanisms of Brain Regeneration.
abstract: Stroke is the second most common cause of death and is a major cause of permanent disability. Given the current demographic trend of an ageing population and associated increased risk, the prevalence of and socioeconomic burden caused by stroke will continue to rise. Current therapies are unable to sufficiently ameliorate the disease outcome and are not applicable to all patients. Therefore, strategies such as cell-based therapies with mesenchymal stem cell (MSC) or induced pluripotent stem cell (iPSC) pave the way for new treatment options for stroke. These cells showed great preclinical promise despite the fact that the precise mechanism of action and the optimal administration route are unknown. To gain dynamic insights into the underlying repair processes after stem cell engraftment, noninvasive imaging modalities were developed to provide detailed spatial and functional information on the donor cell fate and host microenvironment. This review will focus on MSCs and iPSCs as types of widely used stem cell sources in current (bio)medical research and compare their efficacy and potential to ameliorate the disease outcome in animal stroke models. In addition, novel noninvasive imaging strategies allowing temporospatial in vivo tracking of transplanted cells and coinciding evaluation of neuronal repair following stroke will be discussed.
authors.affiliation: Morphology Research Group, Biomedical Research Institute, Hasselt University, Campus Diepenbeek, Bioville, Diepenbeek, Belgium.
authors.forename: Pascal
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Gervois
authors.affiliation: Morphology Research Group, Biomedical Research Institute, Hasselt University, Campus Diepenbeek, Bioville, Diepenbeek, Belgium.
authors.forename: Esther
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Wolfs
authors.affiliation: Morphology Research Group, Biomedical Research Institute, Hasselt University, Campus Diepenbeek, Bioville, Diepenbeek, Belgium.
authors.forename: Jessica
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Ratajczak
authors.affiliation: Morphology Research Group, Biomedical Research Institute, Hasselt University, Campus Diepenbeek, Bioville, Diepenbeek, Belgium.
authors.forename: Yörg
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Dillen
authors.affiliation: Morphology Research Group, Biomedical Research Institute, Hasselt University, Campus Diepenbeek, Bioville, Diepenbeek, Belgium.
authors.forename: Tim
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Vangansewinkel
authors.affiliation: Morphology Research Group, Biomedical Research Institute, Hasselt University, Campus Diepenbeek, Bioville, Diepenbeek, Belgium.
authors.forename: Petra
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Hilkens
authors.affiliation: Morphology Research Group, Biomedical Research Institute, Hasselt University, Campus Diepenbeek, Bioville, Diepenbeek, Belgium.
authors.forename: Annelies
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Bronckaers
authors.affiliation: Morphology Research Group, Biomedical Research Institute, Hasselt University, Campus Diepenbeek, Bioville, Diepenbeek, Belgium.
authors.forename: Ivo
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Lambrichts
authors.affiliation: Morphology Research Group, Biomedical Research Institute, Hasselt University, Campus Diepenbeek, Bioville, Diepenbeek, Belgium. tom.struys@uhasselt.be.
authors.forename: Tom
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Struys
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D002545:Brain Ischemia / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000473:pathology / Q000628:therapy*; D006801:Humans; D057026:Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells / Q000637:transplantation; D008163:Luminescent Measurements / Q000379:methods; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging / Q000379:methods; D045164:Mesenchymal Stem Cell Transplantation / Q000379:methods; D049268:Positron-Emission Tomography / Q000379:methods; D012038:Regeneration / Q000502:physiology; D033581:Stem Cell Transplantation / Q000379:methods*; D020521:Stroke / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000473:pathology / Q000628:therapy*; D015899:Tomography, Emission-Computed, Single-Photon / Q000379:methods
keywords: induced pluripotent stem cells; ischemic stroke; mechanisms of stem cell therapy; mesenchymal stem cells; noninvasive imaging