title: The Role of Autophagy in the Maintenance of Stemness and Differentiation of Mesenchymal Stem Cells.
abstract: Regulated self-consumption, also known as autophagy, is an evolutionary conserved process that degrades cellular components by directing them to the lysosomal compartment of eukaryotic cells. As a major intracellular degradation and recycling pathway, autophagy is crucial for maintaining and remodeling cellular homeostasis during normal cellular and tissue development. Recent studies have demonstrated that autophagy is necessary for the maintenance of cellular stemness and for a number of differentiation processes, including the lineage determination of mesenchymal stem cells. These are multipotent progenitor cells with self-renewal capacities that can give rise to a subset of tissues and thus hold a consistent potential in regenerative medicine. Here, we review the current literature on the complex liaison between autophagy induced by various extra- or intracellular stimuli and the molecular targets that affect mesenchymal stem cells proliferation and differentiation.
authors.affiliation: Orthopaedic Pathophysiology and Regenerative Medicine Unit, Istituto Ortopedico Rizzoli, Bologna, Italy.|Department of Biomedical and Neuromotor Sciences, University of Bologna, Bologna, Italy.
authors.forename: Francesca Vittoria
authors.initials: FV
authors.lastname: Sbrana
authors.affiliation: Orthopaedic Pathophysiology and Regenerative Medicine Unit, Istituto Ortopedico Rizzoli, Bologna, Italy.|Department of Biomedical and Neuromotor Sciences, University of Bologna, Bologna, Italy.
authors.forename: Margherita
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Cortini
authors.affiliation: Orthopaedic Pathophysiology and Regenerative Medicine Unit, Istituto Ortopedico Rizzoli, Bologna, Italy.
authors.forename: Sofia
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Avnet
authors.affiliation: Orthopaedic Pathophysiology and Regenerative Medicine Unit, Istituto Ortopedico Rizzoli, Bologna, Italy.
authors.forename: Francesca
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Perut
authors.affiliation: SC Laboratory of Musculoskeletal Cell Biology, Istituto Ortopedico Rizzoli, Bologna, Italy.
authors.forename: Marta
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Columbaro
authors.affiliation: Department of Oncology-Pathology, Cancer Center Karolinska, Karolinska Institute, Stockholm, Sweden.
authors.forename: Angelo
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: De Milito
authors.affiliation: Orthopaedic Pathophysiology and Regenerative Medicine Unit, Istituto Ortopedico Rizzoli, Bologna, Italy. nicola.baldini@ior.it.|Department of Biomedical and Neuromotor Sciences, University of Bologna, Bologna, Italy. nicola.baldini@ior.it.
authors.forename: Nicola
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Baldini
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001343:Autophagy; D002454:Cell Differentiation; D049109:Cell Proliferation; D006706:Homeostasis; D006801:Humans; D006863:Hydrogen-Ion Concentration; D059630:Mesenchymal Stem Cells / Q000166:cytology*; D008954:Models, Biological; D039904:Pluripotent Stem Cells / Q000166:cytology*
keywords: Acidity; Autophagy; Differentiation; Hypoxia; Mesenchymal stem cell; Senescence; Stemness