Wharton's jelly-derived mesenchymal stem cells in the treatment of four patients with alopecia areata

Alopecia areata (AA) is the second most common cause of non-scarring alopecia. Little is known on the etiopathogenesis of AA. It is considered an autoimmune disease, with T lymphocytes and antibodies directed against hair follicle structures. Topical and systemic therapies are used for the treatment...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published in:Advances in clinical and experimental medicine : official organ Wroclaw Medical University 2021-02, Vol.30 (2), p.211-218
Main Authors: Czarnecka, Anna, Odziomek, Agnieszka, Murzyn, Magdalena, Dubis, Joanna, Bagłaj-Oleszczuk, Marta, Hyncewicz-Gwóźdź, Anita
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Alopecia Areata - therapy
Cell Differentiation
Cells, Cultured
Humans
Mesenchymal Stem Cells
Signal Transduction
T-Lymphocytes
Wharton Jelly
Citations: Items that cite this one
Online Access:Get full text
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
Description
Summary:Alopecia areata (AA) is the second most common cause of non-scarring alopecia. Little is known on the etiopathogenesis of AA. It is considered an autoimmune disease, with T lymphocytes and antibodies directed against hair follicle structures. Topical and systemic therapies are used for the treatment of AA, but none of the therapies used to date have a permanent therapeutic effect. To evaluate the efficacy and safety of AA treatment through a single intradermal injection of a suspension of allogeneic MSCs extracted from Wharton's jelly (WJ-MSCs) into the alopecia foci. The study involved 4 AA patients who underwent experimental therapy with a suspension of WJ-MSCs. The AA intensity was measured using the SALT score. This measure was performed 3 times during treatment: 1st measure (SALT0) prior to treatment; 2nd measure (SALT12) 12 weeks after the treatment; and 3rd measure (SALT24) 24 weeks after the treatment. Furthermore, during each follow-up visit (6, 12, 18, and 24 weeks after the administration of WJ-MSCs) the patient's general condition (physical examination) and local condition were assessed, their mood was evaluated, and a photo of the scalp was taken. Hair regrowth was observed in all patients by an average of 67% at the sites where the cell suspension was administered. In all cases, we observed greater dynamics of hair regrowth in the first 3 months after the treatment, with an average increase of 52.2%, compared to the following 3 months, with an average of 32%. The results of the applied intradermal injections of an allogeneic WJ-MSC suspension were positive with hair growth observed in all participants and the therapy was found to be safe, with no side effects.
ISSN:1899-5276
DOI:10.17219/acem/132069