Therapeutic Potential of Mesenchymal Stem Cells in Psoriasis

Psoriasis is a chronic immune-mediated disease mainly affecting the skin with different clinical manifestations. As patients with psoriasis may also suffer from psoriatic arthritis and the skin lesions of psoriasis are disfiguring, their quality of life is often impaired. Many environmental and genetic factors have been implicated in psoriasis development. Currently, there is no cure for the disease and long-term drug treatment is usually necessary, especially in moderate to severe cases. Mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) are popular candidates for cell-based treatment in many immune-mediated diseases due to their ability to secrete a wide array of cytokines and growth factors and their immunomodulatory properties. MSCs from various sources administered via different routes have been shown to ameliorate psoriasis. This review gives an overview of psoriasis and MSCs and examine preclinical and clinical studies concerning the application of MSCs in the treatment of psoriasis, as well as consolidate major findings in this area of research.