Perinatal Cells: A Promising COVID-19 Therapy?

Abstract

The COVID-19 pandemic has become a priority in the health systems of all nations worldwide. In fact, there are currently no specific drugs or preventive treatments such as vaccines. The numerous therapies available today aim to counteract the symptoms caused by the viral infection that in some subjects can evolve causing acute respiratory distress syndromes (ARDS) with consequent admission to intensive care unit. The exacerbated response of the immune system, through cytokine storm, causes extensive damage to the lung tissue, with the formation of edema, fibrotic tissues and susceptibility to opportunistic infections. The inflammatory picture is also aggravated by disseminated intravascular coagulation which worsens the damage not only to the respiratory system, but also to other organs. In this context, perinatal cells represent a valid strategy thanks to their strong immunomodulatory potential, their safety profile, the ability to reduce fibrosis and stimulate reparative processes. Furthermore, perinatal cells exert antibacterial and antiviral actions. This review therefore provides an overview of the characteristics of perinatal cells with a particular focus on the beneficial effects that they could have in patients with COVID-19, and more specifically for their potential use in the treatment of ARDS and sepsis.

Application of Perinatal Derivatives on Oncological Preclinical Models: A Review of Animal Studies

“…Further, mice or rats described are immunocompromised not to reject human PnD products, such as athymic nude mice or severely compromised immunodeficient (SCID) mice. This fact constitutes an additional limitation for evaluating the anticancer effects of PnD-based cell therapy, knowing in advance that perinatal cells have a strong immunomodulatory potential [ 12 ], which cannot be assessed in these models. One study reported using a non-rodent animal model, the chicken chorioallantoic membrane assay.…”

“…PnD biological products include perinatal tissues and derivatives as cells or their secretome. PnDs have proven clinical or biological benefits in several fields beyond oncology, like wound-healing [ 7 , 8 , 9 , 10 ], COVID-19 [ 11 , 12 ], ovarian diseases [ 13 ], neuroprotection [ 11 , 14 ], bone regeneration [ 15 ], cardiovascular repair and regeneration [ 16 ], ophthalmology [ 17 , 18 ], and more.…”

Biological importance of human amniotic membrane in tissue engineering and regenerative medicine

“…There are currently a few studies on the antimicrobial and antiviral effects of hAM. Notably, hAM can exert antiviral properties by restricting either virus colonization and reproduction or severe consequences caused by an abnormal host response to infection, such as sepsis [ 116 ]. A study including 18 patients with herpetic keratitis-related corneal ulcers or non-healing epithelial abnormalities was treated with hAM transplantation.…”

HIPGEN: a randomized, multicentre phase III study using intramuscular PLacenta-eXpanded stromal cells therapy for recovery following hip fracture arthroplasty

“…DOSES: donor, origin tissue, separation method, exhibited cell characteristics, and site of delivery as published by Murray et al 11 in the international expert consensus on a cell therapy communication tool). PLX-PAD cells are mesenchymal stromal cell (MSC)-like cells, exhibiting similar qualities to MSCs and sharing similar surface characteristics, 12 , 13 but they do not differentiate into downstream cell types of the mesodermal lineage in vitro.…”