Meta-Analysis
Copyright ©The Author(s) 2023. Published by Baishideng Publishing Group Inc. All rights reserved.
World J Stem Cells. Jan 26, 2023; 15(1): 1-15
Published online Jan 26, 2023. doi: 10.4252/wjsc.v15.i1.1
Acute liver failure: A systematic review and network meta-analysis of optimal type of stem cells in animal models
Jun-Feng Ma, Jian-Ping Gao, Zi-Wei Shao
Jun-Feng Ma, Jian-Ping Gao, Zi-Wei Shao, Department of Surgical Oncology, Gansu Provincial Hospital, Lanzhou 730030, Gansu Province, China
Author contributions: Ma JF undertook the design, guidance and writing of the paper; Gao JP and Shao ZW completed the literature retrieval, information extraction and data analysis.
Conflict-of-interest statement: All the authors report no relevant conflicts of interest for this article.
PRISMA 2009 Checklist statement: The authors have read the PRISMA 2009 Checklist, and the manuscript was prepared and revised according to the PRISMA 2009 Checklist.
Open-Access: This article is an open-access article that was selected by an in-house editor and fully peer-reviewed by external reviewers. It is distributed in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution NonCommercial (CC BY-NC 4.0) license, which permits others to distribute, remix, adapt, build upon this work non-commercially, and license their derivative works on different terms, provided the original work is properly cited and the use is non-commercial. See: https://creativecommons.org/Licenses/by-nc/4.0/
Corresponding author: Jun-Feng Ma, MD, PhD, Researcher, Department of Surgical Oncology, Gansu Provincial Hospital, No. 204 Donggang West Road, Chengguan District, Lanzhou 730030, Gansu Province, China. majunfeng1992@sina.com
Received: August 24, 2022
Peer-review started: August 24, 2022
First decision: November 14, 2022
Revised: November 23, 2022
Accepted: December 23, 2022
Article in press: December 23, 2022
Published online: January 26, 2023
ARTICLE HIGHLIGHTS
Research background

The therapeutic effects of various stem cells in acute liver failure (ALF) have been demonstrated in preclinical studies, however, it has not been determined which stem cells have the best therapeutic implications.

Research motivation

The efficacy of stem cells in ALF has been demonstrated in preclinical and clinical trials. However, it remains unclear which stem cells have the most therapeutic potential. Addressing this issue is critical to improve the efficacy of stem cells and to accelerate the progress of basic and clinical research of stem cells.

Research objectives

To explore the best type of stem cells for ALF treatment and to promote the clinical translation of stem cell therapy.

Research methods

A systematic review and meta-analysis of stem cell therapy for ALF. A search was conducted on the PubMed, Web of Science, Embase, Scopus, and Cochrane databases. Two independent reviewers performed the literature search, identification, screening, quality assessment, and data extraction. The data was analyzed by STATA 16 and Winbugs1.4.3 software.

Research results

Stem cell therapy can significantly reduce serum levels of alanine aminotransferase, aspartate aminotransferase, tumor necrosis factor-alpha, and interleukin-6 in animals with ALF. Although mesenchymal stem cells are the current research focus, among the six types of stem cells included in the analysis, liver stem cells (LSCs) have the greatest therapeutic potential.

Research conclusions

LSCs have the best effects in treating ALF.

Research perspectives

In ALF treatment, stem cell therapy, especially LSCs should be paid more attention to. In addition, to improve on the quality of research, future animal studies should be carefully designed and reported.