Mezenhimske matične celice: applications and potential in treatment and diagnosis of musculoskeletal disorders: Mesenchymal stem cells: uporaba in potencial za zdravljenje ter diagnostiko mišično-skeletnih boleznih

Mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) present a rare and heterogeneous population of multipotent progeni- tors ubiquitously present in different tissues including those of adults. Due to their immunosuppressive capabilities and potential to regenerate various con- nective tissues such as bone, cartilage and skeletal muscles, they possess a massive potential for the treatment of various diseases and injuries of musculoskeletal tissues. Within the musculoskeletal system, most well recognized are those from bone tissue, skeletal muscles and joint membrane. Despite the vast progress in their identification and clinical use, changes within MSCs and/or their microenvironment that could potentially initiate musculoskele- tal diseases, such as osteoporosis, osteoarthritis and sarcopenia, are still poorly understood. Due to this fact, the potential of MSCs in diagnosing these conditions is still largely unexploited. The major barriers preventing the progress in this field are loose d efinition of MSCs, their tissue heterogeneity and lack of specific markers. here we provide an overview of current knowledge on the role of MSCs in musculoskeletal system, their use in regenerative medicine and their potential in diagnosing disorders of this important body system. Mezenhimske matične celice (MSC) so redka in heterogena populacija multipotentnih predhodnikov, prisotnih v številnih tkivih tudi pri odraslem človeku. Pomembne so zaradi svojih imunosupresivnih lastnosti in sposobnosti regeneracije tkiv, kot so kost, hrustanec in skeletne mišice. Zato predstavljajo velik potencial za zdravljenje bolezni in poškodb mišično skeletnega tkiva. Na tem področju so najbolj raziskane MSC iz kostnega tkiva, skeletnih mišic in sklepne ovojnice. Kljub napredku pri njihovem odkrivanju in klinični uporabi pa še vedno slabo poznamo spremembe v MSC in/ali njihovem mikrookolju, ki bi lahko bile vzrok mišično-skeletnim boleznim, kot so osteoporoza, osteoartroza in sarkopenija. Posledično je potencial MSC v diagnostiki teh patoloških stanj še neizkoriščen. Največje ovire pri napredku na tem področju so preohlapna definicija MSC, njihova tkivna heterogenost ter pomanjkanje specifičnih označevalcev. V prispevku podajamo pregled trenutnega poznavanja vloge MSC v mišično skeletnem sistemu, njihove uporabe v regenerativni medicini ter njihovega potenciala za diagnostiko bolezni tega pomembnega telesnega sistema.