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REVIEW article

Front. Neurol.
Sec. Neurotrauma
Volume 16 - 2025 | doi: 10.3389/fneur.2025.1472679

Mesenchymal Stem Cell and their Extracellular Vesicle Therapy for Neurological Disorders: Traumatic Brain Injury and Beyond

Provisionally accepted
Aref Yarahmadi Aref Yarahmadi 1Reza Hosseininejad Reza Hosseininejad 2Azin Rezaie Azin Rezaie 3Narges Mohammadi Narges Mohammadi 4Hamed Afkhami Hamed Afkhami 5,6,7*
  • 1 Department of Biology, Khorramabad Branch, Islamic Azad University,, Khorramabad, Lorestan, Iran
  • 2 Department of Stem Cells and Developmental Biology, Royan institute for Stem Cell Biology and Technology, Tehran, Alborz, Iran
  • 3 Department of Microbiology, Faculty of Biological Sciences, Islamic Azad University, North Tehran Branch, Tehran, Alborz, Iran
  • 4 Department of Cell Biology Molecular and Microbiology Faculty of Biotechnology University of Isfahan, Isfahan, Isfahan, Iran
  • 5 Cellular and Molecular Research Centre, Qom University of Medical Sciences, Qom, Iran, Qom, Iran
  • 6 Nervous System Stem Cells Research Center, Semnan University of Medical Sciences, Semnan, Semnan, Iran
  • 7 Department of Medical Microbiology, Faculty of Medicine, Shahed University, Tehran, Iran, Tehran, Alborz, Iran

The final, formatted version of the article will be published soon.

    Traumatic brain injury (TBI) is a complex condition involving mechanisms that lead to brain dysfunction and nerve damage, resulting in significant morbidity and mortality globally. Affecting approximately 50 million people annually, TBI's impact includes a high death rate, exceeding that of heart disease and cancer. Complications arising from TBI encompass concussion, cerebral hemorrhage, tumors, encephalitis, delayed apoptosis, and necrosis. Current treatment methods, such as pharmacotherapy with dihydropyridines, high-pressure oxygen therapy, behavioral therapy, and non-invasive brain stimulation, have shown limited efficacy. A comprehensive understanding of vascular components is essential for developing new treatments to improve blood vessel-related brain damage. Recently, mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) have shown promising results in repairing and mitigating brain damage. Studies indicate that MSCs can promote neurogenesis and angiogenesis through various mechanisms, including releasing bioactive molecules and extracellular vesicles (EVs), which help reduce neuroinflammation. In research, the distinctive characteristics of MSCs have positioned them as highly desirable cell sources.Extensive investigations have been conducted on the regulatory properties of MSCs and their manipulation, tagging, and transportation techniques for brain-related applications. This review explores the progress and prospects of MSC therapy in TBI, focusing on mechanisms of action, therapeutic benefits, and the challenges and potential limitations of using MSCs in treating neurological disorders.

    Keywords: Brain, Traumatic brain injury (TBI), mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs), cell therapy, Extracellular vesicles (EVs)

    Received: 29 Jul 2024; Accepted: 08 Jan 2025.

    Copyright: © 2025 Yarahmadi, Hosseininejad, Rezaie, Mohammadi and Afkhami. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.

    * Correspondence: Hamed Afkhami, Cellular and Molecular Research Centre, Qom University of Medical Sciences, Qom, Iran, Qom, Iran

    Disclaimer: All claims expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of their affiliated organizations, or those of the publisher, the editors and the reviewers. Any product that may be evaluated in this article or claim that may be made by its manufacturer is not guaranteed or endorsed by the publisher.