Human Endometrial-Derived Mesenchymal Stem Cells Suppress Inflammation in the Central Nervous System of EAE Mice

Mesenchymal stromal cells (MSCs) are undifferentiated multipotent cells endowed with the capacity for self-renewal and the potential to differentiate into several distinct cell lineages [1]. It is well established that adult MSCs constitute a reservoir found within connective tissues of most organs, and whose biological function is involved in the maintenance and repair of tissues throughout the postnatal life of an individual. Over the past years we and others have shown that menstrual blood, the endometrium and fallopian tubes are very rich sources of MSCs and able to differentiate into different cell lineages in vitro and/or in vivo [2, 3]. The unique regenerative capacity of the human endometrium following menstruation, postpartum, surgical procedures (uterine curettage, endometrial ablation) and in postmenopausal women undergoing hormonal replacement therapy suggests that MSCs niches present in this tissue are responsible, at least in part, for this process. This makes these cells a very interesting approach to studies in regenerative medicine, especially in autoimmune disorders. Multiple sclerosis (MS) is a debilitating and neurodegenerative autoimmune disease with a significant social burden. It is mainly characterized by central nervous system (CNS) inflammation, gliosis, neuronal death and demyelination [4, 5]. Its murine model, experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis (EAE), has generated many important data concerning MS pathology and treatment [6–9]. In EAE, mice are subcutaneously immunized with myelin-derived antigens such as myelin oligodendrocyte glycoprotein (MOG35-55), myelin basic protein (MBP) and also proteolipoprotein (PLP) [6]. In the periphery T CD4 cells differentiate into Th1 and Th17 cells and have been implicated in the pathogenesis of EAE [10–12]. Although IFN-γ and ILStem Cell Rev and Rep (2012) 8:940–952 DOI 10.1007/s12015-011-9338-3