The role of steroids in mesenchymal stem cell differentiation: molecular and clinical perspectives

Abstract

Mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) are multipotent stem cells capable of either self-regeneration or differentia tion into more mature cell types, depending on the environmental stimuli. MSCs originate from the mesoderm and differentiate readily into mesodermal tissue. The tissues most studied in that respect are bone, fat and cartilage, and the key molecular elements in these three differentiation pathways are RUNX2, PPARγ and SOX9, respectively. Steroidal molecules play an important role in determining the fate of MSCs, mainly by altering the expression of key cellular molecules. Not all steroids exert the same effects on these cells. This review discusses the effects of sex steroids and glucocorticoids on the proliferative capacity and differentiation patterns of MSCs. With stem-cell-based therapy gaining worldwide attention, we explore the role of steroids in modulating MSCs for clinical and therapeutic purposes. The ease with which some MSCs, such as adipose-derived stem cells, can be harvested from the body and manipulated in the laboratory may lead to increased interest in this era of stem cells.

Epigenetics and developmental programming of welfare and production traits in farm animals

“…Specifically, female fetuses exposed to BPA have increased ESR1 gene expression in adulthood, whereas ESR2 gene expression is reduced by exposure to both BPA and MXC. Changes in steroid receptor abundance may alter feedback mechanisms responsible for ovulation, potentially altering mating behaviour and fertility (Mahoney and Padmanabhan 2010), and this hypothesis has been investigated by Salloum et al (2013) for BPA and MXC. In addition, specific oestrogen-receptive neural populations that regulate GnRH secretion are altered by EDCs, namely kisspeptin, its receptor and galanin receptors 1-3 (Bellingham et al 2009.…”

Peer Review #1 of "Alveolar soft-part sarcoma (ASPS) resembles a mesenchymal stromal progenitor: evidence from meta-analysis of transcriptomic data (v0.1)"

“…Re-screening these compounds for their ability to inhibit the growth of ASPS-1 may yield clinically tractable candidates for ASPS treatment. From the authors perspective, the effect of HDAC inhibitors, steroids and retinoids on ASPS-1 growth are of particular interest (Lee et al 2009b;Salloum et al 2013). The findings of this study have a central caveat; all speculation regarding cellular origin must be moderated until the inference of ASPL-TFE3 is removed.…”

Testosterone propionate can promote effects of acellular nerve allograft‐seeded bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells on repairing canine sciatic nerve

“…TP acts as endocrine molecules, modulating cells that possess AR. BMSCs have been shown to express AR, suggesting that TP do affect BMSCs (Chang et al, ; Crisostomo et al, ; Herrmann et al, ; Lee & Teixeira, ; Salloum, Rubin, & Marra, ). Androgen and AR signals have been studied in BMSCs as regards their differentiation capacities into myocytes, adipocytes, and osteoblasts, and differential AR roles in BMSCs differentiation were revealed, but the mechanism within remains controversial (Huang, Luo, Lee, & Chang, ; Jasuja, Catlin, et al, ; Jasuja, Ramaraj, et al, ; Kemppainen et al, ; Tsai et al, ; Y. Wang & Beydoun, ); furthermore, androgen and AR signals in BMSCs' neural lineages differentiation remain unknown.…”