Human Umbilical Cord Blood as an Emerging Stem Cell Therapy for Diabetes Mellitus

Abstract

Cellular therapy for patients with diabetes is receiving great attention among scientists and clinicians. Bone marrow is considered one of the rich sources of stem cells. However, the limited availability of bone marrow donors precludes its use for all the suitable patients. Human umbilical cord blood (HUCB) is being increasingly used as an alternative source of stem cells for cell-based therapy for malignant and nonmalignant diseases. HUCB is preferred to bone marrow because of its easy availability, low potential for graft-versus-host disease and tumorigenicity as well as infectious complications. Furthermore, no immunosuppression is required. In vitro and in vivo studies have shown that HUCB-derived stem cells can differentiate into insulin-secreting β-cells. Administration of HUCB cells has been shown to improve blood glucose levels in diabetic animals. The first use of autologous HUCB transfusion in type 1 diabetic children is showing promise in reducing the daily requirement of insulin dose and the maintenance of near normoglycemia over a short period of time. The time has come for more clinical trials using autologous and allogenic cord blood transfusion to treat diabetes mellitus.

Safety of Allogeneic Umbilical Cord Blood Stem Cells Therapy in Patients with Severe Cerebral Palsy: A Retrospective Study

“…Our previous study also found that UCBC treatment could significantly improve gross motor function measure (GMFM) scores in patients with severe cerebral palsy, especially in supine, prone, and sitting functions [ 15 ]. The transplantation with UCBCs without full HLA matching still had lower incidences of GVHD, graft-versus-leukemia (GvL), and tumorigenicity as well as infectious complications in other circumstance reported by previous studies [ 23 , 24 ]. In our clinical trial circumstance, allogeneic UCBSCs without full HLA matching in absence of immune suppression/myeloablation to treat nonhematopoietic conditions showed to be even safer than those mentioned before [ 25 ].…”

Evaluation of efficacy and regenerative potential of Wharton’s jelly and bone marrow derived mesenchymal stem cells in diabetic rats

“…It is evidenced that MSCs from foetal sources, when compared to adult sources, creates a large population of immature unprimed highly functional regulatory T lymphocytes [19]. These regulatory T cells are reported to help decrease the inflammatory cytokine response that instigates diabetes.…”

Mesenchymal Stem Cells in the Treatment of Type 1 Diabetes Mellitus

“…MSCs are multipotent, self-renewing cells that not only are primarily localized in the bone marrow but can also be isolated from other tissues, including adipose tissue [17], skeletal muscle [18], amniotic fluid [19], and umbilical cord blood [20]. Moreover, MSCs can be expanded for several passages without losing their self-renewing capacity [21].…”

“…Although these were only preliminary results, Timper et al reported that insulin-producing cells could be generated from adipose-derived MSCs [44]. Finally, the human umbilical cord blood is another source of stem cells with the potential to develop into insulin-producing cells, even in vivo [20].…”