Soluble Tumor Necrosis Factor Receptor 1 Released by Skin-Derived Mesenchymal Stem Cells Is Critical for Inhibiting Th17 Cell Differentiation

This study showed that administration of skin-derived mesenchymal stem cells (S-MSCs) was able to alleviate the clinical score of experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis by inhibiting the differentiation of T helper 17 (Th17) cells. Tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-α is a critical cytokine for promoting Th17 cell differentiation. It was discovered that activated S-MSCs produced high amount of soluble TNF receptor 1 (sTNFR1), which neutralized TNF-α and inhibited Th17 cell polarization. The data identified S-MSC-secreted sTNFR1 and its target TNF-α as essential regulators for Th17 cell differentiation and revealed a novel mechanism underlying MSC-mediated immunomodulatory function in autoimmunity.

Source: Stem Cells Translational Medicine - February 24, 2016 Category: Stem Cells Authors: Ke, F., Zhang, L., Liu, Z., Yan, S., Xu, Z., Bai, J., Zhu, H., Lou, F., Cai, W., Sun, Y., Gao, Y., Wang, H., Wang, H. Tags: Tissue-Specific Progenitor and Stem Cells, Mesenchymal Stem Cells Source Type: research