Spinal cord injury (SCI) is a devastating medical condition with profound social and economic impacts. Although research is ongoing, current treatment options are limited and do little to restore functionality. However, recent studies suggest that mesenchymal stem cell-derived exosomes (MSC-exosomes) may hold the key to exciting new treatment options for SCI patients. MSCs are self-renewing multipotent stem cells with multi-directional differentiation and can secrete a large number of exosomes (vesicles secreted into the extracellular environment through endocytosis, called MSC-exosomes). These MSC-exosomes play a critical role in repairing SCI through promoting angiogenesis and axonal growth, regulating inflammation and the immune response, inhibiting apoptosis, and maintaining the integrity of the blood–spinal cord barrier. Furthermore, they can be utilized to transport genetic material or drugs to target cells, and their relatively small size makes them able to permeate the blood–brain barrier. In this review, we summarize recent advances in MSC-exosome themed SCI treatments and cell-free therapies to better understand this newly emerging methodology.

中文翻译：

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间充质干细胞衍生的外泌体：脊髓损伤修复的希望

脊髓损伤 (SCI) 是一种破坏性的医疗状况，具有深远的社会和经济影响。尽管研究正在进行中，但目前的治疗方案有限，对恢复功能几乎没有作用。然而，最近的研究表明，间充质干细胞衍生的外泌体（MSC-外泌体）可能是为 SCI 患者提供令人兴奋的新治疗选择的关键。间充质干细胞是具有多向分化能力的自我更新多能干细胞，可分泌大量外泌体（通过内吞作用分泌到细胞外环境中的囊泡，称为MSC-外泌体）。这些 MSC 外泌体通过促进血管生成和轴突生长、调节炎症和免疫反应、抑制细胞凋亡和维持血-脊髓屏障的完整性，在修复 SCI 中发挥关键作用。此外，它们可用于将遗传物质或药物输送到靶细胞，而且它们相对较小的尺寸使其能够渗透血脑屏障。在这篇综述中，我们总结了以 MSC 外泌体为主题的 SCI 治疗和无细胞治疗的最新进展，以更好地理解这种新兴的方法。