Exosome- and Microrna-based Therapeutic Approach for Tendinopathy
type: CreativeWork
description: Tendinopathy, characterized by degeneration and chronic inflammation, is a significant clinical burden. Current treatments focus on symptom management but do not sufficiently address its underlying pathology; however, stem cell-based approaches aimed at repairing diseased tissues may overcome this limitation. Therapeutic effects of stem cells may be due in part to paracrine actions, including some mediated by exosomes – extracellular vesicles secreted by cells that play a role in cell communication. MicroRNA (miRNA), small non-coding RNA carried by exosomes, are likely responsible for many exosome effects. Exosomes and miRNA therapies show promise in treating diseases such as cancer and arthritis, but there is no exosome or miRNA product yet available for clinical use, and development of new treatments face many translational hurdles. Previous studies in our lab reported that Ex3D, exosomes secreted by tendon stem/progenitor cells (TSPCs) grown on a specialized scaffold, showed efficacy in tendinopathy. However, TSPCs are not feasible for clinical use due to donor site morbidity. Therefore, in the first major part of this thesis, the first objective was to test the hypothesis that MSCs derived from a readily available source – adipose tissue – would demonstrate efficacy in treating an animal model of tendinopathy. The second objective was to advance Ex3D toward FDA compliance, beginning with developing the scaffold. We found that adipose-derived stem cells (ADSCs) produced Ex3D that mitigated major histopathological features of tendinopathy as assessed by modified Movin score. The effects on ultimate load and modulus of the tendon tissue, and pain-related behavior (plantar hypersensitivity of the animals) were also examined. This study established the feasibility of using ADSC-derived Ex3D as a therapy for tendinopathy. Furthermore, the new design and prototype of a machine-made scaffold for consistency and scalability is presented. In the search for the mechanism o…
abstract: Tendinopathy, characterized by degeneration and chronic inflammation, is a significant clinical burden. Current treatments focus on symptom management but do not sufficiently address its underlying pathology; however, stem cell-based approaches aimed at repairing diseased tissues may overcome this limitation. Therapeutic effects of stem cells may be due in part to paracrine actions, including some mediated by exosomes – extracellular vesicles secreted by cells that play a role in cell communication. MicroRNA (miRNA), small non-coding RNA carried by exosomes, are likely responsible for many exosome effects. Exosomes and miRNA therapies show promise in treating diseases such as cancer and arthritis, but there is no exosome or miRNA product yet available for clinical use, and development of new treatments face many translational hurdles. Previous studies in our lab reported that Ex3D, exosomes secreted by tendon stem/progenitor cells (TSPCs) grown on a specialized scaffold, showed efficacy in tendinopathy. However, TSPCs are not feasible for clinical use due to donor site morbidity. Therefore, in the first major part of this thesis, the first objective was to test the hypothesis that MSCs derived from a readily available source – adipose tissue – would demonstrate efficacy in treating an animal model of tendinopathy. The second objective was to advance Ex3D toward FDA compliance, beginning with developing the scaffold. We found that adipose-derived stem cells (ADSCs) produced Ex3D that mitigated major histopathological features of tendinopathy as assessed by modified Movin score. The effects on ultimate load and modulus of the tendon tissue, and pain-related behavior (plantar hypersensitivity of the animals) were also examined. This study established the feasibility of using ADSC-derived Ex3D as a therapy for tendinopathy. Furthermore, the new design and prototype of a machine-made scaffold for consistency and scalability is presented. In the search for the mechanism o…
author: Wang Ilaltdinov, Angela
keywords: tendinopathy, exosomes, miRNA, miR-221-5p, Biology, Biomedical Engineering and Bioengineering, Translational Medical Research
date published: 2022-01-01T08:00:00Z
date modified: 2026-07-24T01:57:53Z
provider: City University of New York - City College
publisher: Networked Digital Library of Theses and Dissertations
type: WebPage
source organization: City University of New York - City College