Zhang X, He J, Zhao K, et al. Mesenchymal Stem Cells Ameliorate Chronic GVHD by Boosting Thymic Regeneration in a CCR9-Dependent Manner in Mice. Blood Advances. 2023; (doi: 10.1182/bloodadvances.2022009646).

By stimulating thymic regeneration, mesenchymal stromal cells (MSCs) can help to curtail both the incidence and severity of chronic graft-versus-host disease (cGVHD) following allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation, new research shows. Earlier work established that significant thymus damage mediated by mature donor T cells within the graft promotes cGVHD. A murine model of the disease reveals that the CCL25-CCR9 signaling axis facilitates MSC homing to the thymus, where MSCs subsequently repair the damage caused by acute GVHD and enable improvement of thymus function. Specifically, investigators report that MSCs increase both the number and maturity of thymic epithelial cells.

Read More

Tags: GVHD, Graft versus host disease, graft, graft-vs-host disease, graft-versus-host