Abstract:

BACKGROUND: Stem cells are a kind of cells with the capacity for self-renewal and multi-lineage differentiation and in vitro proliferation and have become an ideal material for cell transplantation. At present, stem cells and regenerative medicine have become a gradually increasing area in the field of natural science. This study analyzed the advances in application of bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells, neural stem cells, embryonic stem cells, umbilical cord blood stem cells and adipose-derived stem cells in repair of traumatic nerve injury. However, the source, the oriented induction, transplantation and neurological repair function judgment of neural stem cells have still many problems.
OBJECTIVE: To investigate the advances in application of stem cells in repair of traumatic nerve injury.
METHODS: A computer-based online retrieval was performed by the first author in SCI (Science Citation Index) database to search papers regarding the application of stem cells in the repair of traumatic nerve injury with the key words “stem cell, bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells, neural stem cell, embryonic stem cell, adipose-derived stem cells, umbilical cord blood stem cells, adult stem cells, traumatic brain injury, spinal cord injury, traumatic nerve injury, growth factor, repair” in both Chinese and English. The advances in application of bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells, neural stem cells, embryonic stem cells, umbilical cord blood stem cells and adipose-derived stem cells in repair of traumatic nerve injury were further analyzed.
RESULTS AND CONCLUSION: Stem cells are a kind of special cells with capacity for self-renewal, strong proliferation and multi-lineage differentiation. The self-renewal and multi-lineage differentiation potential are the most significant biological characteristics. At present, stem cells have been successfully isolated from many tissues or organs including embryonic stem cells, hematopoietic stem cells and bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells. In addition, the cells most studied in recent years include neura l stem cells, muscle stem cells, osteoblasts, endodermal stem cells and retinal stem cells. The multi-lineage differentiation potential of stem cells provides a new way for repair of traumatic nerve injury and great advances have been made in neural repair and function reconstruction after brain injury and spinal cord injury. Therefore, stem cells have wide application prospect. However, there still have some problems to be further solved.