Acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) is the main cause for the COVID-19 infection-related morbidity and mortality. Recent clinical evidences suggest increased level of cytokines and chemokines targeting lung tissue as a prominent etiological factor. The immunomodulatory effect of mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) as the alternative therapy for the treatment of inflammatory and autoimmune diseases is well known. Several studies have also revealed that similar therapeutic impacts of parent MSCs are also exhibited by MSCs-derived extracellular vesicles (EVs) including exosomes. In this review, we explored the therapeutic potential of both MSCs and exosomes in mitigating the COVID-19 induced cytokine storm as well as promoting the regeneration of alveolar tissue, attributed to the intrinsic cytokines and growth factor present in the secretome. The preliminary studies have demonstrated the safety and efficacy of MSCs and exosomes in mitigating symptoms associated with COVID-19. Thus, they can be used on compassionate basis, owing to their ability to endogenously repair and decrease the inflammatory reactions involved in the morbidity and mortality of COVID-19. However, more preclinical and clinical studies are warranted to understand their mechanism of action and further establish their safety and efficacy.

急性呼吸窘迫综合征 (ARDS) 是 COVID-19 感染相关发病率和死亡率的主要原因。最近的临床证据表明，靶向肺组织的细胞因子和趋化因子水平升高是一个突出的病因。间充质干细胞 (MSC) 作为治疗炎症和自身免疫性疾病的替代疗法的免疫调节作用是众所周知的。几项研究还表明，包括外泌体在内的 MSC 衍生的细胞外囊泡 (EV) 也表现出类似的母体 MSC 治疗作用。在这篇综述中，我们探讨了 MSCs 和外泌体在减轻 COVID-19 诱导的细胞因子风暴以及促进肺泡组织再生方面的治疗潜力，这归因于分泌蛋白组中存在的内在细胞因子和生长因子。初步研究证明了 MSC 和外泌体在减轻 COVID-19 相关症状方面的安全性和有效性。因此，由于它们能够内源性修复和减少与 COVID-19 的发病率和死亡率有关的炎症反应，因此可以在同情的基础上使用它们。然而，需要更多的临床前和临床研究来了解它们的作用机制并进一步确定它们的安全性和有效性。