AUTHOR=Zhang Cangyu , Deng Rongrong , Zhang Guangzhi , He Xuegang , Chen Haiwei , Chen Bao , Wan Lin , Kang Xuewen 

TITLE=Therapeutic Effect of Exosomes Derived From Stem Cells in Spinal Cord Injury: A Systematic Review Based on Animal Studies

JOURNAL=Frontiers in Neurology

VOLUME=Volume 13 - 2022

YEAR=2022

URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/neurology/articles/10.3389/fneur.2022.847444

DOI=10.3389/fneur.2022.847444

ISSN=1664-2295

ABSTRACT=Abstract
Objective The actual effect of stem cell-derived exosomes in repairing spinal cord injury is systematically evaluated to reduce the risk of clinical transformation of animal experimental results. Method Three electronic databases, namely PubMed, Web of Science, and Ovid-Embase were searched. The studies were retrieved from inception to October, 2021. Two researchers independently screened the literature, extracted data, and evaluated the methodological quality based on the inclusion criteria. Results and Discussion Thirty-two studies were incorporated into the final analyses. Exosomes derived from stem cells could not only significantly improve the motor function of animals with spinal cord injury, significantly increase the expression of anti-inflammatory factors IL-4 and IL-10 and anti-apoptotic protein Bcl-2, while significantly lowering the pro-inflammatory factor IL-1β and TNF-α and the expression of the apoptotic protein BAX. However, the mechanism of exosome-mediated spinal cord injury repair, as well as the best source and dosage, remain unknown. In addition, there are still some issues with the design, implementation and reporting of animal experiments in the included studies. Therefore, future research should further standardize the implementation and reporting of animal studies, and fully explore the best strategies for exosomes to repair spinal cord injury, so as to reduce the risk of clinical transformation of preclinical research findings.