ArticleScientific reports2021
A comparative study of mesenchymal stem cell transplantation and NTG-101 molecular therapy to treat degenerative disc disease.
Article in Scientific reports, 2021. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 10 papers.
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Who cites it
10 citing papers in PubMed, 17 citations in OpenAlex.
- Rebuilding the degenerative disc microenvironment: mesenchymal stem cells, exosomes, and bioengineered scaffolds.Frontiers in bioengineering and biotechnology · 2026Review
- LncRNA HCG18 regulates the progression of spinal tuberculosis by modulating the hsa-miR-146a-5p/TGF-β1/SMADs pathway.Journal of orthopaedic surgery and research · 2025Article
- Proteolytic enzyme models as tunable preclinical platforms for investigating intervertebral disc degeneration.Frontiers in cell and developmental biology · 2025Review
- Intervertebral Disc Progenitors: Lessons Learned from Single-Cell RNA Sequencing and the Role in Intervertebral Disc Regeneration.Bioengineering (Basel, Switzerland) · 2023Article
- Review
- Umbilical cord mesenchymal stem cells for regenerative treatment of intervertebral disc degeneration.Frontiers in cell and developmental biology · 2023Review
- Pretreatment of nucleus pulposus mesenchymal stem cells with appropriate concentration of HStem cell research & therapy · 2022Article
- A Single Injection of NTG-101 Reduces the Expression of Pain-Related Neurotrophins in a Canine Model of Degenerative Disc Disease.International journal of molecular sciences · 2022Article
- The Influence of Intervertebral Disc Microenvironment on the Biological Behavior of Engrafted Mesenchymal Stem Cells.Stem cells international · 2022Review
- Current Status of the Instructional Cues Provided by Notochordal Cells in Novel Disc Repair Strategies.International journal of molecular sciences · 2021Review
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
5 authors at 1 institution in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
Cellular replacement therapy using mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) and/or the delivery of growth factors are at the forefront of minimally invasive biological treatment options for Degenerative Disc Disease (DDD). In this study, we compared the therapeutic potential of a novel drug candidate, NTG-101 to MSCs, including rat cartilage derived stem cells (rCDSCs), bone marrow stem cells (rBMSCs) and human Umbilical Cord Derived Mesenchymal Stem Cells (hUCMSCs) for the treatment of DDD. We induced DDD using a validated image-guided needle puncture injury in rat-tail IVDs. Ten weeks post-injury, animals were randomized and injected with MSCs, NTG-101 or vehicle. At the end of the study, histological analysis of the IVD-Nucleus Pulposus (NPs) injected with NTG-101 or rCDSCs showed a healthy or mild degenerative phenotype in comparison to vehicle controls. Immunohistochemical analysis revealed strong expression of aggrecan, collagen 2, brachyury and Oct4 in IVD-NPs injected with NTG-101. Our results also demonstrated suppression of inflammation induced p38 and NFκB resulting in inhibition of catabolic genes, but activation of Smad-2/3, Erk-1/2 and Akt-dependent signaling inducing anabolic genes in IVD-NP on treatment with NTG-101. In conclusion, a single injection of NTG-101 into the degenerative disc demonstrated superior benefits compared to stem cell transplantation.
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