Cell therapy rejuvenates the neuro-glial-vascular unit

Bandy Chen

doi:10.4103/NRR.NRR-D-24-01359

摘要：The rise of the aging population parallels the rapidly increasing cases of neurological disorders.This puts pressure on scientists and physicians to find novel methods that can prevent and treat neurodegeneration.The brain is made up of a complex network of different cell types that work in tandem to maintain systemic homeostasis.These cells include vascular cells(endothelial cells,pericytes,and smooth muscle cells),glial cells(astrocytes,microglia,and oligodendrocytes),and neurons that have different functions to complement each other and form the neuro-glial-vascular unit(NVU).These elements act in concert to orchestrate neurovascular coupling and maintain blood-brain barrier(BBB)integrity.Unlike other systems in the human body,the brain has limited regenerative capacity.To overcome this limitation,novel approaches in stem cell biology,immune cell engineering,and bioengineering work in tandem to repair,replace,and restore function in the central nervous system.Due to the diverse cell types of the central nervous system,cell therapy allows cell type-specific modifications to precisely target neural circuitries and advance personalized medicine.This puts cell therapy at the forefront as a potential treatment to rejuvenate the cerebral landscape.This perspective focuses on the impact of cell therapy through the lens of the NVU.