Mesenchymal Stem Cell–Sourced Exosomes as Potentially Novel Remedies for Severe Dry Eye Disease

Severe dry eye disease (DED) is an inflammatory condition characterized by a lack of sufficient moisture or lubrication on the surface of the eye, significantly impacting the quality of life and visual function. Since detrimental immune response is crucially responsible for the development and aggra...

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Main Authors: Carl Randall Harrell, Valentin Djonov, Ana Volarevic, Aleksandar Arsenijevic, Vladislav Volarevic
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Wiley 2025-01-01
Series:Journal of Ophthalmology
Online Access:http://dx.doi.org/10.1155/joph/5552374
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author Carl Randall Harrell
Valentin Djonov
Ana Volarevic
Aleksandar Arsenijevic
Vladislav Volarevic
author_facet Carl Randall Harrell
Valentin Djonov
Ana Volarevic
Aleksandar Arsenijevic
Vladislav Volarevic
author_sort Carl Randall Harrell
collection DOAJ
description Severe dry eye disease (DED) is an inflammatory condition characterized by a lack of sufficient moisture or lubrication on the surface of the eye, significantly impacting the quality of life and visual function. Since detrimental immune response is crucially responsible for the development and aggravation of DED, therapeutic agents which modulate phenotype and function of eye-infiltrated inflammatory immune cells could be used for the treatment of severe DED. Due to their potent immunomodulatory properties, mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) represent potentially new remedies for the treatment of inflammatory eye diseases. The majority of MSC-sourced bioactive factors are contained within MSC-derived exosomes (MSC-Exos), nano-sized extracellular vesicles which, due to their nanosize dimension and lipid envelope, easily by pass all biological barriers in the body and deliver their cargo directly into the target immune cells. MSC-Exos contain a variety of bioactive proteins (growth factors, immunoregulatory molecules, cytokines, and chemokines) lipids, and microRNAs (miRNAs) which affect viability, proliferation, phenotype, and function of eye-infiltrated immune cells. Accordingly, MSC-Exos may modulate the progression of inflammatory eye diseases, including DED. Therefore, in this review article, we summarized the current knowledge regarding molecular and cellular mechanisms which were responsible for trophic, anti-inflammatory, immunoregulatory, and regenerative properties of MSC-Exos in the treatment of severe DED. For this purpose, an extensive literature review was carried out in February 2024 across several databases (Medline, Embase, and Google Scholar), from 2000 to the present. Eligible studies delineated molecular and cellular mechanisms responsible for the MSC-Exos–based modulation of immune cell–driven eye inflammation in DED, and their findings were analyzed in this review. Results obtained in these studies demonstrated beneficial effects of MSC-Exos in the treatment of severe DED, paving the way for their future clinical use in ophthalmology.
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spelling doaj-art-12d9a503150540818817056361d235a72025-01-18T00:00:06ZengWileyJournal of Ophthalmology2090-00582025-01-01202510.1155/joph/5552374Mesenchymal Stem Cell–Sourced Exosomes as Potentially Novel Remedies for Severe Dry Eye DiseaseCarl Randall Harrell0Valentin Djonov1Ana Volarevic2Aleksandar Arsenijevic3Vladislav Volarevic4Department of Molecular BiologyDepartment of AnatomyDepartments of PsychologyDepartments of GeneticsDepartments of GeneticsSevere dry eye disease (DED) is an inflammatory condition characterized by a lack of sufficient moisture or lubrication on the surface of the eye, significantly impacting the quality of life and visual function. Since detrimental immune response is crucially responsible for the development and aggravation of DED, therapeutic agents which modulate phenotype and function of eye-infiltrated inflammatory immune cells could be used for the treatment of severe DED. Due to their potent immunomodulatory properties, mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) represent potentially new remedies for the treatment of inflammatory eye diseases. The majority of MSC-sourced bioactive factors are contained within MSC-derived exosomes (MSC-Exos), nano-sized extracellular vesicles which, due to their nanosize dimension and lipid envelope, easily by pass all biological barriers in the body and deliver their cargo directly into the target immune cells. MSC-Exos contain a variety of bioactive proteins (growth factors, immunoregulatory molecules, cytokines, and chemokines) lipids, and microRNAs (miRNAs) which affect viability, proliferation, phenotype, and function of eye-infiltrated immune cells. Accordingly, MSC-Exos may modulate the progression of inflammatory eye diseases, including DED. Therefore, in this review article, we summarized the current knowledge regarding molecular and cellular mechanisms which were responsible for trophic, anti-inflammatory, immunoregulatory, and regenerative properties of MSC-Exos in the treatment of severe DED. For this purpose, an extensive literature review was carried out in February 2024 across several databases (Medline, Embase, and Google Scholar), from 2000 to the present. Eligible studies delineated molecular and cellular mechanisms responsible for the MSC-Exos–based modulation of immune cell–driven eye inflammation in DED, and their findings were analyzed in this review. Results obtained in these studies demonstrated beneficial effects of MSC-Exos in the treatment of severe DED, paving the way for their future clinical use in ophthalmology.http://dx.doi.org/10.1155/joph/5552374
spellingShingle Carl Randall Harrell
Valentin Djonov
Ana Volarevic
Aleksandar Arsenijevic
Vladislav Volarevic
Mesenchymal Stem Cell–Sourced Exosomes as Potentially Novel Remedies for Severe Dry Eye Disease
Journal of Ophthalmology
title Mesenchymal Stem Cell–Sourced Exosomes as Potentially Novel Remedies for Severe Dry Eye Disease
title_full Mesenchymal Stem Cell–Sourced Exosomes as Potentially Novel Remedies for Severe Dry Eye Disease
title_fullStr Mesenchymal Stem Cell–Sourced Exosomes as Potentially Novel Remedies for Severe Dry Eye Disease
title_full_unstemmed Mesenchymal Stem Cell–Sourced Exosomes as Potentially Novel Remedies for Severe Dry Eye Disease
title_short Mesenchymal Stem Cell–Sourced Exosomes as Potentially Novel Remedies for Severe Dry Eye Disease
title_sort mesenchymal stem cell sourced exosomes as potentially novel remedies for severe dry eye disease
url http://dx.doi.org/10.1155/joph/5552374
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