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Updated: Jan 10, 2026
Investigating Intestinal Barrier Breakdown in Living Organoids
Published on: March 26, 2020
Human cord blood mononuclear cells alleviate intestinal inflammation and barrier dysfunction by regulating gut
Linmao Lyu1, Yanfei Ma2, Xuyan Sun2
1Department of Emergency Medicine, Qilu Hospital of Shandong University, Jinan, China; Shandong Provincial Clinical Research Center for Emergency and Critical Care Medicine, Institute of Emergency and Critical Care Medicine of Shandong University, Chest Pain Center, Qilu Hospital of Shandong University, Jinan, China; Key Laboratory of Emergency and Critical Care Medicine of Shandong Province, Key Laboratory of Cardiopulmonary-Cerebral Resuscitation Research of Shandong Province, Shandong Provincial Engineering Laboratory for Emergency and Critical Care Medicine, Qilu Hospital of Shandong University, Jinan, China; Key Laboratory of Cardiovascular Remodeling and Function Research, Chinese Ministry of Education, Chinese Ministry of Health and Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences, Jinan, China; Shandong Qilu Stem Cell Engineering Co.LTD, Jinan, China; The State and Shandong Province Joint Key Laboratory of Translational Cardiovascular Medicine, Jinan, China; Qilu Hospital of Shandong University, Jinan, China.
Background:
Cord blood mononuclear cells (CB-MNCs) are a potential alternative therapy for inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). Gut metabolites, T helper 17 (Th17) and regulatory T (Treg) cells are crucial for intestinal hemeostasis and recovery. However, the role of CB-MNCs in modulating IBD, gut metabolites and the Th17/Treg balance remains unclear.
Methods:
In this study, dextran sodium sulfate (DSS) was used to induce acute colitis in male C57BL/6 J mice, followed by treatment with CB-MNCs, umbilical cord-derived mesenchymal stem cells (UC-MSCs), or mesalazine. The severity of colitis was assessed daily using the disease activity index (DAI), and feces were collected for metabolomic analysis. Upon sacrifice, the colons, mesenteric lymph nodes (MLNs) and spleens of the mice were preserved for further study.
Results:
Our findings demonstrated that compared with UC-MSCs and mesalazine, CB-MNCs treatment had superior efficacy in improving clinical symptoms, tissue repair, promoting intestinal regeneration and integrity. While CB-MNCs were equivalent to UC-MSCs and mesalazine in terms of preserving colon length and anti-inflammatory activity. At the molecular level, CB-MNCs exhibited unique and powerful effects. CB-MNCs were found to significantly increase the abundance of cortisol, corticosterone, and several metabolites with anti-inflammatory and antioxidant activities in the feces of colitis mice. CB-MNCs were also more effective than UC-MSCs and mesalazine at maintaining Th17/Treg balance than UC-MSC and mesalazine in colitis mice.
Conclusions:
The intravenous injection of CB-MNCs can alleviate intestinal inflammation and barrier dysfunction by modulating gut metabolites and the Th17/Treg balance. Therefore, CB-MNCs be a promising treatment for IBD.
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