Authors: Samantha Albano, Vincent S. Gallicchio
Systemic lupus erythematosus is an autoimmune disease characterized by a diverse range of clinical presentation and severe complications involving multiple organ systems. The global prevalence of this disorder ranges from 13 to 7713.5 per 100 000 individuals, with non-Caucasian women at the highest risk of developing the disease. SLE is a social as well as public health problem as this condition ranks among one of the top twenty leading causes of death in females from the age of five to sixty-four years of age and current treatments using multidisciplinary approaches can only work to control symptoms and further progression of disease while no true cure exists. Recent studies involving stem cell therapy in other autoimmune disorders with similar pathogenesis to systemic lupus erythematosus have encouraged clinic trials focused on investigating whether stem cells may be effective in treating this autoimmune disease. Mesenchymal stem cells are multipotent and capable of differentiating into many different cell types and are therefore seen as a promising strategy to treat even severe cases of systemic lupus erythematosus and lupus nephritis. These stem cells have a immunomodulatory effect and are known to affect the proliferative activity of immune cells such as T lymphocytes, B lymphocytes, natural killer cells and macrophages, which are all involved in the pathogenesis of SLE. Clinical trials in progress have indicated promise regarding stem cell therapy as a safe and tolerable treatment, however, further trials must be conducted in order to assess the efficacy of stem cell therapy in the long-term amelioration of disease.
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