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Copyright ©The Author(s) 2023. Published by Baishideng Publishing Group Inc. All rights reserved.
World J Stem Cells. Jul 26, 2023; 15(7): 665-686
Published online Jul 26, 2023. doi: 10.4252/wjsc.v15.i7.665
Human retinal secretome: A cross-link between mesenchymal and retinal cells
Luigi Donato, Concetta Scimone, Simona Alibrandi, Sergio Zaccaria Scalinci, Domenico Mordà, Carmela Rinaldi, Rosalia D'Angelo, Antonina Sidoti
Luigi Donato, Concetta Scimone, Simona Alibrandi, Domenico Mordà, Carmela Rinaldi, Rosalia D'Angelo, Antonina Sidoti, Department of Biomedical and Dental Sciences and Morphofunctional Imaging, University of Messina, Messina 98125, Italy
Luigi Donato, Concetta Scimone, Simona Alibrandi, Domenico Mordà, Department of Biomolecular Strategies, Genetics and Cutting-Edge Therapies, Euro-Mediterranean Institute of Science and Technology, Palermo 90139, Italy
Simona Alibrandi, Department of Chemical, Biological, Pharmaceutical and Environmental Sciences, University of Messina, Messina 98125, Italy
Sergio Zaccaria Scalinci, Department of Medical and Surgical Sciences, University of Bologna, Bologna 40121, Italy
Author contributions: Donato L wrote the paper; Donato L, Scimone C, Alibrandi S, Mordà D, Scalinci SZ and Rinaldi C made relevant contributions to conception and design of the article; D’Angelo R and Sidoti A made critical revisions related to important intellectual content of the manuscript.
Conflict-of-interest statement: The authors declare no conflicts of interest for this article.
Open-Access: This article is an open-access article that was selected by an in-house editor and fully peer-reviewed by external reviewers. It is distributed in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution NonCommercial (CC BY-NC 4.0) license, which permits others to distribute, remix, adapt, build upon this work non-commercially, and license their derivative works on different terms, provided the original work is properly cited and the use is non-commercial. See: https://creativecommons.org/Licenses/by-nc/4.0/
Corresponding author: Simona Alibrandi, PhD, Department of Biomedical and Dental Sciences and Morphofunctional Imaging, University of Messina, Via Consolare Valeria 1, Messina 98125, Italy. salibrandi@unime.it
Received: December 23, 2022
Peer-review started: December 23, 2022
First decision: March 9, 2023
Revised: March 17, 2023
Accepted: April 10, 2023
Article in press: April 10, 2023
Published online: July 26, 2023
Abstract

In recent years, mesenchymal stem cells (MSC) have been considered the most effective source for regenerative medicine, especially due to released soluble paracrine bioactive components and extracellular vesicles. These factors, collectively called the secretome, play crucial roles in immunomodulation and in improving survival and regeneration capabilities of injured tissue. Recently, there has been a growing interest in the secretome released by retinal cytotypes, especially retinal pigment epithelium and Müller glia cells. The latter trophic factors represent the key to preserving morphofunctional integrity of the retina, regulating biological pathways involved in survival, function and responding to injury. Furthermore, these factors can play a pivotal role in onset and progression of retinal diseases after damage of cell secretory function. In this review, we delineated the importance of cross-talk between MSCs and retinal cells, focusing on common/induced secreted factors, during experimental therapy for retinal diseases. The cross-link between the MSC and retinal cell secretomes suggests that the MSC secretome can modulate the retinal cell secretome and vice versa. For example, the MSC secretome can protect retinal cells from degeneration by reducing oxidative stress, autophagy and programmed cell death. Conversely, the retinal cell secretome can influence the MSC secretome by inducing changes in MSC gene expression and phenotype.

Keywords: Secretome, Mesenchymal stem cells, Retinal cells, Extracellular vesicles, Retinal diseases

Core Tip: Recently, the mesenchymal stem cell secretome, a solution rich with paracrine bioactive factors and extracellular vesicles, acquired a significant role in immunomodulation and survival induction of damaged tissues. A secretome is also released by retinal cells, physiologically or following pathological stimuli. One of the most promising therapeutic frontiers is represented by a possible “cross-talk” between mesenchymal stem cells and retinal cells through the secretomes in order to improve the knowledge on released factors mechanisms of action during their potentially beneficial role.