Bone marrow stromal cells as targets for gene therapy

The bone marrow (BM) is composed of the non-adherent hematopoietic and adherent stromal cell compartment. This adherent BM stromal cell fraction contains pluripotent mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) and differentiated mesenchymal BM stromal cells. The MSCs self-renew by proliferation while maintaining their stem-cell phenotype and give rise to the differentiated stromal cells which belong to the osteogenic, chondrogenic, adipogenic, myogenic and fibroblastic lineages. A more primitive adherent stem cell was recently identified, the multipotent adult progenitor cell (MAPC) or mesodermal progenitor cell, which co-purifies with MSCs. These MAPCs differentiate into MSCs, endothelial, epithelial and even hematopoietic cells. BM stroma cells, including the primitive pluripotent MSCs and MAPCs, are attractive targets for cell and gene therapy. The BM stromal cell population and its multipotent stem cells can be engineered to secrete a series of different proteins in vitro and in vivo that could potentially treat a variety of serum protein deficiencies and other genetic or acquired diseases, including bone, cartilage and BM stromal disorders or even cancer.