Mesenchymal Stem Cell-Based Therapy for Diabetes Mellitus: Enhancement Strategies and Future Perspectives

Diabetes mellitus (DM), a chronic disorder of carbohydrate metabolism, is characterized by the unbridled hyperglycemia resulted from the impaired ability of the body to either produce or respond to insulin. As a cell-based regenerative therapy, mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) hold immense potency for curing DM duo to their easy isolation, multi-differentiation potential, and immunomodulatory property. However, despite the promising efficacy in pre-clinical animal models, naive MSC administration fails to exhibit clinically satisfactory therapeutic outcomes, which varies greatly among individuals with DM. Recently, numbers of innovative strategies have been applied to improve MSC-based therapy. Preconditioning, genetic modification, combination therapy and exosome application are representative strategies to maximize the therapeutic benefits of MSCs. Therefore, in this review, we summarize recent advancements in mechanistic studies of MSCs-based treatment for DM, and mainly focus on the novel approaches aiming to improve the anti-diabetic potentials of naive MSCs. Additionally, the potential directions of MSCs-based therapy for DM are also proposed at a glance.