Therapeutic potential of adipose tissue-derived stem cells in acute lung injury rat model

Acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) is a major cause of morbidity and mortality in critically ill patients. We evaluated the therapeutic potential of adipose tissue-derived stem cells (ATSCs) in a murine model of acute lung injury (ALI). ATSCs, labeled with PKH-26, were injected intravenously into rats 24 hours after intratracheal lipopolysaccharide (LPS) challenge. Two or 14 days later, the rats were sacrificed to assess cell migration to injured lung and the degree of lung injury. ATSCs were identified both in ALI lung and in normal lung at 2 d after cell transplantation. However, after 14 d, more ATSCs were found in the ALI lung than in the normal lung. Furthermore, ATSC-treated rats demonstrated a trend towards decreased lung inflammation as measured by BAL cytokines and cellular response. These data suggest that intravenously injected ATSCs can migrate to acutely injured lung and may potentially play a role in attenuating the inflammatory response.