Placenta stem cells as the crossroad of pharmacotherapy and regenerative medicine

Despite huge progress in the fields of advanced medical technologies and new drug discoveries, targeted drug delivery is still a major challenge in targeted therapies. The use of a variety of carriers, such as nanocarriers and microspheres, has some limitations including the inability to control drug uptake by target tissue cells results from steric barrier between the carrier and the cells caused by the surface coating. Recently, cell-based therapies have attracted a great deal of attention as promising alternatives for targeted therapy of different types of diseases. Mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) are considered as one of the most appropriate sources for targeted therapies because they have the ability of chemo-attraction and thus can be localized in the desired tissue. In addition, these cells can be used as an effective vehicle for drug delivery in the site of lesion. Human placenta is known as a unique source of stem cell types that has overcame many challenges toward other cellular resources. For example, the placental-derived stem cells have modulatory effects and also secrete a wide variety of growth factors and anti-inflammatory cytokines. Most importantly, access to these cells is non-invasive and does not lead to ethical challenges. It has been shown that some of these cells have a high potential for transfer and release of drugs in the target area, especially in the treatment of cancer. Therefore, placenta derived stem cells are expected to be as a crossroad between pharmacotherapy and regenerative medicine.

Keywords:

Placenta stem cells , Pharmacotherapy , Regenerative medicine