Assessment of Bovine Umbilical Cord-Derived Stem Cells in Conjunction with Glutamine for Mitigation of Hepatic Injury in the Context of Acute Pancreatitis
*Corresponding Author:Received Date: Mar 07, 2024 / Published Date: Apr 23, 2025
Citation: Guan W, Zong J, Liu Y, Guan Y, Yan Y, et al. (2025) Assessment of Bovine Umbilical Cord-Derived Stem Cells in Conjunction with Glutamine for Mitigation of Hepatic Injury in the Context of Acute Pancreatitis. Diagnos Pathol Open 10: 251.
Copyright: © 2025 Guan W, et al. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.
Abstract
Acute Pancreatitis (AP) is a localized-to-systemic inflammatory disorder that triggers the release of various proinflammatory mediators. Unfortunately, effective treatments for this condition are currently lacking and a substantial portion of AP patients succumb to liver failure due to the intricate physiological and pathological interplay between the liver and pancreas. Umbilical Cord Mesenchymal Stem Cells (UCMSCs) exhibit notable attributes, including multipotent differentiation capacity, colony-forming potential and robust migratory responses to injury. Glutamine, an essential amino acid in cell culture and a source of immune cells, is used in early nutritional interventions to help with pancreatitis. In this study, our objective was to evaluate the therapeutic efficacy of a combinatorial approach involving UCMSCs and glutamine in the management of hepatic injury associated with pancreatitis. To accomplish this objective, we established an acute pancreatitis murine model and administered UCMSCs via tail vein injections while concurrently providing oral glutamine supplementation. The homing of these cells was observed in rats through fluorescence microscopy. A comprehensive array of techniques was employed to assess treatment outcomes. Histopathological examination, as revealed by HE staining, demonstrated a significantly reduced extent of pancreatic tissue damage in both the UCMSC-treated and combined therapy groups compared to the AP control group. Serum amylase and lipase activities were markedly diminished in the UCMSC and combined therapy groups in comparison to the untreated AP group (P<0.05). Furthermore, the expression levels of proinflammatory cytokines such as IL-6, IL-1 β, and TNF-α were significantly attenuated, while those of the anti-inflammatory IL-10 and SOD were notably elevated in the UCMSCtreated and combined therapy groups (P<0.05). The assessment of apoptosis, a pivotal aspect of tissue damage in pancreatitis, demonstrated a significantly higher apoptotic index in the untreated AP group (P<0.05), whereas it was significantly lower in the UCMSC-treated and combined therapy groups (P<0.05). Our findings indicate that the combined therapeutic approach involving UCMSCs and glutamine substantially mitigates hepatocyte apoptosis induced by Acute Pancreatitis (AP). However, there was no statistically significant difference in efficacy between combination therapy and direct Mesenchymal Stem Cell (MSC) therapy in ameliorating liver injury in the context of pancreatitis (P>0.05). While combination glutamine therapy presents a promising and novel therapeutic avenue, its efficacy not diverges from that of direct cell-based regimens.
