Systemic recovery and therapeutic effects of transplanted allogenic and xenogenic mesenchymal stromal cells in a rat blunt chest trauma model

Background

Effective therapy of Acute Lung Injury (ALI) is still a major scientific and clinical problem. To define novel therapeutic strategies for sequelae of blunt chest trauma (TxT) like ALI/Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome, we have investigated the immunomodulatory and regenerative effects of a single dose of ex vivo expanded human or rat mesenchymal stromal cells (hMSCs/rMSCs) with or without priming, immediately after the induction of TxT in Wistar rats.

Methods

We analyzed the histological score of lung injury, the cell count of the broncho alveolar lavage fluid (BAL), the change in local and systemic cytokine level and the recovery of the administered cells 24?h and 5 days post trauma.

Results

The treatment with hMSCs reduced the injury score 24?h after trauma by at least 50% compared with TxT rats without MSCs. In general, TxT rats treated with hMSCs exhibited a lower level of pro-inflammatory cytokines (interleukin IL]-1B, IL-6) and chemokines (C-X-C motif chemokine ligand 1 CXCL1], C-C motif chemokine ligand 2 CCL2]), but a higher tumor necrosis factor alpha induced protein 6 (TNFAIP6) level in the BAL compared with TxT rats after 24?h. Five days after trauma, cytokine levels and the distribution of inflammatory cells were similar to sham rats. In contrast, the treatment with rMSCs did not reveal such therapeutic effects on the injury score and cytokine levels, except for TNFAIP6 level.

Conclusion

TxT represents a suitable model to study effects of MSCs as an acute treatment strategy after trauma. However, the source of MSCs has to be carefully considered in the design of future studies.