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BackgroundThe purpose of this study was to determine the efficacy of umbilical cord mesenchymal stem cell (UCMSC) transplantation in a mouse atherosclerosis (AS) model and explore its potential antioxidative stress and lipid metabolism regulatory effects.MethodsA mouse AS model was established by feeding ApoE-/- mice a high-fat diet, after which UCMSCs were administered by intraperitoneal injection. The treatment effect was evaluated by measuring heart size and carrying out aortic arch histological staining and blood biochemical detection of blood lipids; RT-PCR was utilized to detect the levels of autophagy-related genes, and Q-TOF was used to detect free fatty acids.ResultsAfter UCMSC treatment in a mouse model of AS: the number of aortic arch plaques, length of the heart and heart-to-weight ratio were significantly reduced. Aortic arch staining showed that UCMSC treatment reduced the degree of aortic arch intima lesions. Furthermore, serum total cholesterol (TC), triglyceride (TG), and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) levels were decreased, while the serum high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C) level was increased The transcript levels of autophagy-related genes in the heart and liver were significantly higher in AS model mice than in control mice. Finally, the levels of phosphatidylinositol (PI) and ceramide (Cer) in the mouse plasma decreased to the level of the metabolite PI in the liver.Conclusions UCMSCs increased the overall autophagy level in AS model mice, improved liver metabolic dysfunction, inhibited the formation of atherosclerotic plaques and improved the clinical symptoms of AS in the mouse model.

Ischemia-reperfusion injury is an important contributor to acute kidney injury and a major factor affecting early functional recovery after kidney transplantation. We conducted this experiment to investigate the protective effect of induced multipotent stem cell transplantation on renal ischemia-reperfusion injury. Forty rabbits were divided into four groups of 10 rabbits each. Thirty rabbits were used to establish the renal ischemia-reperfusion injury model, and ten rabbits served as the model group and were not treated. Among the 30 rabbits with renal ischemia-reperfusion injury, 10 rabbits were treated with induced peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs), and 10 other rabbits were treated with noninduced PBMCs. After three weekly treatments, the serum creatinine levels, urea nitrogen levels and urine protein concentrations were quantified. The kidneys were stained with hematoxylin-eosin (HE), periodic acid-Schiff (PAS) and Masson’s trichrome and then sent for commercial metabolomic testing. The kidneys of the rabbits in the model group showed different degrees of pathological changes, and the recovery of renal function was observed in the group treated with induced cells. The results indicate that PBMCs differentiate into multipotent stem cells after induction and exert a therapeutic effect on renal ischemia-reperfusion injury.