Interaction of Wharton's jelly derived fetal mesenchymal cells with tumor cells

Currently, pre-clinical and clinical studies have demonstrated the importance of stem cell based therapies for the treatment of human diseases. Fetal Mesenchymal Stem Cells (Fetal MSCs) are potential candidates that can be utilized for the treatment of different types of cancer. Recently, Wharton's jelly (umbilical cord matrix) was proved to be a rich source of MSCs and they can be isolated by non-invasive methods such as Ficoll density gradient and antibodies coupled magnetic beads without any ethical issues. Documentation based on various literatures emphasized that fetal MSCs isolated from fetal umbilical cord possess beneficial activity in cancer therapy than adult MSCs. Specific markers of fetal MSCs such as tumor tropism (exhibit tumor microenvironments which act similar to anti inflammation immune cells) and low immunogenicity conferred them as a promising tool in gene therapy based oncology research. Based on these facts, this review summarizes the potential interaction of fetal mesenchymal stem cells with tumor cells and their use in clinical protocols.