Evaluation of the Efficacy of Stem Cell Therapy in Ovariectomized Osteoporotic Rats Based on Micro-CT and Dual-Energy X-Ray Absorptiometry: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

Abstract

Objective. Osteoporosis is an abnormal bone metabolism disease characterized by microstructural degeneration of bone tissue and reduction in bone mass, resulting in increased brittleness of bone tissue and susceptibility to fracture. Due to the tissue regenerative potential of stem cell transplantation, it is now used in the treatment of various disease models such as osteoporosis. The purpose of this work is to carry out a systematic review and meta-analysis of the efficacy of stem cell therapy in ovariectomized (OVX) osteoporotic rats. Methods. PubMed, Cochrane Library, ScienceDirect, Embase, CNKI, and Wanfang Databases were used to search for articles that met the inclusion criteria. Two researchers independently screened the articles that met the inclusion criteria. RevMan 5.3 and STATA 16.0 were used for data analysis. This meta-analysis was registered at INPLASY with reference number ID: INPLASY202150017. Results. Thirteen eligible studies were selected, including 405 rats. The sources of stem cells are divided into four main categories: bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells (BMSCs), adipose-derived stem cells (ADSCs), amniotic membrane mesenchymal stem cells (AM-MSCs), and human umbilical cord blood-derived mesenchymal stem cells (hUCB-MSCs). Compared with the OVX group, both stem cell transplantation groups had higher bone mineral density (BMD) (BMSCs: SMD = 2.01 , 95% CI: [1.38, 2.63], P < 0.001 , I 2 = 76.6 % ; ADSCs: SMD = 2.24 , 95% CI: [0.79, 3.69], P = 0.003 , I 2 = 86.7 % ) and bone volume/total volume (BV/TV) (hUCB-MSCs: SMD = 1.71 , 95% CI: [0.97, 2.44], P < 0.001 , I 2 = 0 % ; ADSCs: SMD = 2.16 , 95% CI: [0.27, 4.04], P = 0.025 , I 2 = 82.6 % ). In the BMSC treatment groups, the trabecular numbers (Tb.N) ( SMD = 4.28 , 95% CI: [0.91, 7.64], P = 0.013 , I 2 = 94.9 % ) were significantly higher, whereas the results for trabecular thickness (Tb.Th) ( SMD = 2.7 , 95% CI: [-0.34, 5.73], P = 0.081 , I 2 = 95.4 % ) and trabecular spacing (Tb.Sp) ( SMD = − 3.08 , 95% CI: [-6.55, 0.38], P = 0.081 , I 2 = 96.3 % ) were not statistically significant compared to those of the OVX group. The stem cell transplantation group had a low BMD, BV/TV, and Tb.N compared to the sham operation group. Conclusion. Stem cell therapy may increase bone strength, bone volume, and the number of trabeculae in OVX osteoporotic rats. The results of this meta-analysis showed the potential therapeutic effect of stem cell transplantation in OVX osteoporotic rats, bringing new therapeutic ideas and directions to the clinical treatment of osteoporosis. Due to the limited number and quality of studies related to some outcomes, more high-quality RCTs are still needed in the future to complement the existing findings.

Exploring the Mechanism of Circ-vgll3 in Osteogenically Differentiated Human Bone Marrow Mesenchymal Stem Cells

“…Wu et al found differentially expressed circRNAs in patients with osteoporosis and found that 237 circRNAs were upregulated and 279 circRNAs were down-regulated, which also confirmed the important role of circRNAs in the osteogenic differentiation of BMSCs [9] . Another study found that circRNAs were differentially expressed in patients with traumatic femoral head necrosis, and found that 234 circRNAs were upregulated and 148 circRNAs were downregulated [10] . Zou et al found that circRNAs such as circ_28313, circ_0016624, circ_0006393, circ_0076906, and circ_0048211 were differentially expressed in patients with osteoporosis and played an important role in the differentiation, proliferation, and apoptosis of bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells [3] .…”

Near-Infrared Light-Controlled and Real-Time Detection of Osteogenic Differentiation in Mesenchymal Stem Cells by Upconversion Nanoparticles for Osteoporosis Therapy

“…and Uejima et al . injected MSCs into the marrow cavity and assessed the physical property through biomechanical tests, and they showed MSCs contributed to the maintenance of biomechanical properties . The results demonstrated that the TNF-α levels were decreased, and the level of T cell apoptosis, bone volume fraction, trabecular number, and BMD increased after MSC injection.…”