Dry eye disease (DED) is a common multifactorial disease of the tear film and the ocular surface. The problem of DED has gained attention globally, with millions of people affected by the disorder. Although the treatment strategies for DED have significantly evolved over time, most of the existing modalities fall under the category of standard palliative care when viewed from a long-term perspective. To address these limitations, different approaches have been explored by various groups to uncover alternative treatment strategies that can contribute to a full regeneration of the damaged lacrimal gland, which is responsible for producing the major aqueous component of the tear film. For this, multiple groups have investigated the role of lacrimal gland cells in DED based on their regenerating, homing, and differentiating capabilities. In this review, we discuss in detail the therapeutic mechanisms and regenerative strategies that can potentially be applied for lacrimal gland regeneration as well as their therapeutic applications. This review mainly focuses on aqueous deficiency dry eye disease (ADDE) caused by lacrimal gland dysfunction and possible future treatment strategies. The current key findings from cell and tissue-based regenerative therapy modalities that could be utilised to achieve lacrimal gland tissue regeneration are summarized. In addition, this review summarises the available literature from in vitro to in vivo studies, their limitations in relation to lacrimal gland regeneration and the possible clinical applications. Finally, current issues and unmet needs of cell-based therapies in providing complete lacrimal gland tissue regeneration are discussed.

干眼症（DED）是一种常见的泪膜和眼表多因素疾病。DED 的问题已引起全球关注，数百万人受到该疾病的影响。尽管 DED 的治疗策略随着时间的推移发生了显着变化，但从长期来看，大多数现有方式都属于标准姑息治疗的范畴。为了解决这些限制，不同的研究小组已经探索了不同的方法，以发现有助于受损泪腺完全再生的替代治疗策略，它负责产生泪膜的主要水性成分。为此，多个小组根据泪腺细胞的再生、归巢和分化能力研究了泪腺细胞在 DED 中的作用。在这篇综述中，我们详细讨论了可能应用于泪腺再生的治疗机制和再生策略及其治疗应用。本综述主要关注泪腺功能障碍引起的缺水性干眼症（ADDE）以及未来可能的治疗策略。总结了当前可用于实现泪腺组织再生的基于细胞和组织的再生治疗方式的主要发现。此外，本综述总结了体外对于体内研究，它们在泪腺再生方面的局限性和可能的​​临床应用。最后，讨论了基于细胞的疗法在提供完整的泪腺组织再生方面的当前问题和未满足的需求。