The effect of olfactory stem cells in treatment of olfactory disorder

Treatment of olfactory disorder is a challenging subject in medical science. Stem cell therapy as a big favorable could be considered for future treatment aimed at olfactory disorders.Objectives To investigate the effects of transplanted human olfactory ecto-mesenchymal stem cells (OE-MSCs) on recovery of anosmia in rats. Methods The anosmia model was induced in rats by administration of intraperitoneal 3-methylindole. The OE-MSCs were isolated from human olfactory mucosa and labeled with DiI and transplanted intranasal into anosmic rats. The olfactory function of rats was assessed by odor detection test (ODT) at second and fourth weeks, following the testing, the animal was killed, and the olfactory neuroepithelium thickness was measured. Also, immunohistochemical staining was performed to evaluate the engraftment of olfactory stem cells into the olfactory neuepithelium at four weeks. Results The ODT proved that anosmia recovered in transplanted rats compared with control group. Histologically, olfactory epithelium became thicker in treated groups. Double staining for DiI and olfactory marker protein (OMP) showed that a population of the DiI-positive cells in the olfactory mucosa. Conclusion The results of our study demonstrate that recovery of olfactory function was promoted by intranasal transplantation of olfactory mucosa stem cells in the anosmic rat model. These data indicate that human olfactory mucosa stem cells might be one of the future modalities for treating olfactory disorders

Keywords:

Smell , Olfactory ecto-mesenchymal stem cells , Anosmia , Transplantation