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Clinical Evaluation of Human Umbilical Cord Mesenchymal Stem Cell for the Treatment of Rheumatoid Arthritis
Yang Yi1,2, He Xiao1, Guo Wei1, Zhu Ming1, Zhao Rongsen1, Liu Chongyang2*, Xu Xiang1*
1First Department, State Key Laboratory of Trauma, Burns and Combined Injury, Third Affiliated Hospital & Research Institute of Surgery, Third Military Medical University, Chongqing 400044, China; 2Department of Rheumatology, Third Affiliated Hospital & Research Institute of Surgery, Third Military Medical University, Chongqing 400042, China
Abstract: The part of rheumatoid arthritis (RA) patients with conventional drug treatment can not achieve clinical remission， and mesenchymal stem cells (MSC) with immunomodulatory ability could treat immune dysfunction diseases. Based on above facts， the present study evaluated the safety and efficacy of human umbilical cord mesenchymal stem cells (hUC-MSC) in the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis (RA). A total of 50 patients with persistently active RA but poor responses to conventional medication underwent MSCT. The results demonstrated that 12 months after MSCT， outcomes of the patients were evaluated according to the EULAR response criteria， those with good or moderate response were put into the response group (n=30)， and those with no response were put into the no-response group (n=20). For the response group， peripheral regulatory T cells increased while the percentage of Th17 cells decreased， the levels of tumor necrosis factor-alpha and interleukin-6 in serum decreased， and interleukin-10 increased after MSCT. These were not observed in the no-response group. No serious adverse events were reported for either group. It is suggested that allogeneic MSCT ameliorated disease activity， improved serological markers and restored immune homeostasis， for a portion of patients with active RA refractory to conventional treatment.
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