[Research Progress on the Bone Marrow Microenvironment in Beta-Thalassemia --Review]

Thalassemia is one of the most common and harmful single-gene recessive disorders in the clinic. It is characterized by impaired or absent production of one globin chain of hemoglobin in adults. The most common form is beta-thalassemia, which is associated with defects in the production of beta-globin chain, resulting in an imbalance in the ratio of alpha-globin to beta-globin. As a result, unbound free alpha-globin chains precipitated in red blood cell precursors, resulting in iron overload, ineffective red blood cell production, and changes in mesenchymal stem cells, osteoblasts, osteoclasts, and other associated cells. Among them, iron overload and ineffective red blood cell production will destroy the bone marrow microenvironment, which will cause further damage to the hematopoietic system. Therefore, the correction of the bone marrow microenvironment plays an important role in the treatment of thalassemia. This review summarizes studies on the destruction of the bone marrow microenvironment in beta-thalassemia, treatment options for improving the microenvironment and stem cell transplantation.