SynthesisStem cells and development2014
A systematic review of the safety and efficacy of mesenchymal stem cells for disc degeneration: insights and future directions for regenerative therapeutics.
Synthesis in Stem cells and development, 2014. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 52 papers.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
52 citing papers in PubMed, 100 citations in OpenAlex.
- Article
- Stem cell therapy for degenerative disc disease: A systematic review of preclinical evidence, clinical translation, and future directions.North American Spine Society journal · 2026Review
- miR-34c-3p promotes osteogenic differentiation of BMSCs by inhibiting DCBLD2 activation of the PI3K/AKT signaling pathway.Journal of molecular histology · 2026Article
- Comparative Regenerative Efficacy of PRP Combined with Chondrocytes or Mesenchymal Stem Cells for Intervertebral Disc Regeneration in a Rabbit Model.International journal of molecular sciences · 2025Article
- Evaluation of alginate/poly(vinyl alcohol)/BaSORSC advances · 2025Article
- High impact works on stem cell transplantation in intervertebral disc degeneration.BMC musculoskeletal disorders · 2024Article
- Evidence-based orthobiologic practice: Current evidence review and future directions.World journal of orthopedics · 2024Article
- Review
- Multipotent Mesenchymal Stem Cell-Based Therapies for Spinal Cord Injury: Current Progress and Future Prospects.Biology · 2023Review
- Research trends and hotspots of mesenchymal stromal cells in intervertebral disc degeneration: a scientometric analysis.EFORT open reviews · 2023Review
- Pretreatment of nucleus pulposus mesenchymal stem cells with appropriate concentration of HStem cell research & therapy · 2022Article
- Mesenchymal Stem Cell-Derived Exosomes and Intervertebral Disc Regeneration: Review.International journal of molecular sciences · 2022Review
- Transcription regulators differentiate mesenchymal stem cells into chondroprogenitors, and theirWorld journal of stem cells · 2022Article
- Review
- Emerging roles of growth factors in osteonecrosis of the femoral head.Frontiers in genetics · 2022Review
- Neohesperidin promotes the osteogenic differentiation of human bone marrow stromal cells by inhibiting the histone modifications of lncRNA SNHG1.Cell cycle (Georgetown, Tex.) · 2021Article
- A comparative study of mesenchymal stem cell transplantation and NTG-101 molecular therapy to treat degenerative disc disease.Scientific reports · 2021Article
- Animal models of regenerative medicine for biological treatment approaches of degenerative disc diseases.Experimental biology and medicine (Maywood, N.J.) · 2021Review
- Single-Cell RNA-Seq Analysis Reveals Macrophage Involved in the Progression of Human Intervertebral Disc Degeneration.Frontiers in cell and developmental biology · 2021Article
- Polydatin Ameliorates Osteoporosis via Suppression of the Mitogen-Activated Protein Kinase Signaling Pathway.Frontiers in cell and developmental biology · 2021Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
8 authors at 3 institutions in 4 countries.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
Intervertebral disc degeneration is associated with low-back pain. Mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) have been used to "regenerate" the disc. The aim of this study was to perform a systematic review of comparative controlled studies that have assessed the safety and efficacy of using MSCs for disc regeneration. Literature databases were extensively searched. Trial design, subject-type, MSC sources, injection method, disc assessment, outcome intervals, and complication events were assessed. Validity of each study was performed. Twenty-four animal studies were included with 20.8% of the studies reporting randomization of groups. Trials in humans fulfilling inclusion criteria were not noted. The studies represented 862 discs that were injected with MSCs and 1,603 discs as controls. All three types of MSCs (ie, bone marrow, synovial, and adipose tissues) showed successful inhibition of disc degeneration. Bone-marrow-derived MSCs demonstrated superior quality of repair compared with other non-MSC treatments. A 2.7% overall complication rate was noted, whereby complications were noted only in rabbits. Overall, evidence suggested that MSCs increased disc space height in the majority of animal models. This is the first systematic review to assess the safety and efficacy of MSCs for the treatment of disc degeneration. Short-term MSC transplantation is safe and effective; however, additional, larger, and higher-quality studies are needed to assess the long-term safety and efficacy. Inconsistencies in methodological design and outcome parameters prevent any robust conclusions. Human-based clinical trials are needed. Recommendations are further made to improve efficacy, reduce potential complications, and standardize techniques for future studies.
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Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.