Editorial: Functional heterogeneity of stem cells

Abstract

Editorial on the Research Topic Functional heterogeneity of stem cellsRegulation of the functional activity of stem cells is extremely important for their coordinated action in the processes of tissue repair and regeneration, as well as maintenance of its homeostasis. We now understand that stem cells are not just progenitors but are capable of regulating their host tissue's function. This includes regulation of proliferation, migration, and differentiation of other cells, as well as secretion of paracrine factors, extracellular vesicles, and regulatory microRNAs. A wide variety of mechanisms and forms of regulation of stem cells hormonal sensitivity ensures harmonious interaction between the body, tissue, and stem cells, finely adjusting their functioning to dynamically changing conditions. This diversity is based on the functional heterogeneity of stem cell populations in the human body.The functional heterogeneity of stem cells manifests itself at several levels. First, stem cells differ in their properties when they are isolated from different individuals, even from the same line of animals. This is especially noticeable and important in practical terms when it comes to the use of primary cultures of human stem cells. Secondly, stem cells of even the same type differ when they are isolated from different organs. For example, multipotent mesenchymal stromal cells (MSCs) of adipose tissue differ in their proliferative, and differentiation potential, as well as in their immunomodulatory ability when isolated from various adipose tissue depots (Kulebyakin et al., 2022). Further, stem cells are heterogeneous in their sensitivity to regulatory hormones. Thus, it was shown that individual MSCs are sensitive to various hormones that activate GPCR (Kotova et al., 2014). At the same time, cells show plasticity, signal heterogeneity reappears in clones of a single cell (Tyurin-Kuzmin et al., 2020).As a result, at the level of the whole organism, functional heterogeneity allows us to achieve two goals: to ensure that stem cells are in different states (for example, part of the stem cells is in an undifferentiated state as a tissue regenerative potential), and on the other hand, to provide sensitivity to a wide range of regulatory influences at the population level.This Research Topic has invited original research articles and reviews focused on all aspects of functional heterogeneity of stem cells including but not limited to the links between the phenotype of stem cells and their functions, functional analysis of subpopulations of stem cells, regulation of stem cell heterogeneity by signaling molecules and microRNAs, and influence of cellular senescence and metabolic disorders on the sub-