Letter to the Editor
Copyright ©The Author(s) 2024. Published by Baishideng Publishing Group Inc. All rights reserved.
World J Cardiol. Dec 26, 2024; 16(12): 776-780
Published online Dec 26, 2024. doi: 10.4330/wjc.v16.i12.776
Comparative breakthrough: Umbilical cord mesenchymal stem cells vs bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells in heart failure treatment
Peng Li
Peng Li, Department of Geriatics, Beijing Hospital, National Center of Gerontology, Institute of Geriatric Medicine, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences, Beijing 100730, China
Author contributions: Li P performed the research and wrote this manuscript.
Supported by National High Level Hospital Clinical Research Funding Project, No. BJ-2023-206.
Conflict-of-interest statement: The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.
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: Peng Li, MD, Doctor, Department of Geriatics, Beijing Hospital, National Center of Gerontology, Institute of Geriatric Medicine, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences, No. 1 Dongdan, Dahua Road, Dongcheng District, Beijing 100730, China. lipbenzi@126.com
Received: August 6, 2024
Revised: September 21, 2024
Accepted: November 6, 2024
Published online: December 26, 2024
Processing time: 112 Days and 6.6 Hours
Abstract

In this article, we evaluate the comparative efficacy and safety of mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) derived from bone marrow (BM-MSCs) and umbilical cord (UC-MSCs) in the treatment of heart failure and myocardial infarction. MSCs have gained importance as living bio drug due to their regenerative potential, with BM-MSCs being the most extensively studied. However, UC-MSCs offer unique advantages, such as noninvasive collection and fewer ethical concerns. This systematic review and meta-analysis summarizes data from 13 randomized controlled trials, which included a total of 693 patients. Their study shows that UC-MSCs significantly improved left ventricular ejection fraction by 5.08% at 6 months and 2.78% at 12 months compared with controls, while BM-MSCs showed no significant effect. Neither cell type showed significant changes in 6-minute walk distance. In addition, UC-MSCs and BM-MSCs had comparable safety profiles, with no significant differences in major adverse cardiac events, except for a lower rehospitalization rate observed with BM-MSCs. These results position UC-MSCs as a promising alternative in MSC-based therapies for cardiac disease, offering potential improvements in cardiac function while maintaining a favorable safety profile. Future research should focus on optimizing administration protocols and further exploring the long-term benefits and mechanisms of UC-MSCs in cardiac repair.

Keywords: Mesenchymal stem cells; Heart failure; Umbilical cord-derived mesenchymal stem cells; Bone marrow-derived mesenchymal stem cells; Left ventricular ejection fraction; 6-minute walking distance; Cardiac regeneration therapy

Core Tip: This article provides a comparative analysis of umbilical cord-derived mesenchymal stem cells (UC-MSCs) and bone marrow-derived mesenchymal stem cells (BM-MSCs) for the treatment of heart failure. UC-MSCs significantly increase left ventricular ejection fraction and exhibit a favorable safety profile, positioning them as a promising alternative to BM-MSCs. Future research should focus on optimizing administration protocols and understanding the long-term benefits of UC-MSCs in cardiac therapy.