Osteogenic and Chondrogenic Differentiation of Mesenchymal Stem Cells
A special issue of International Journal of Molecular Sciences (ISSN 1422-0067). This special issue belongs to the section "Molecular Biology".
Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (15 November 2022) | Viewed by 6886
Special Issue Editor
Interests: cell biology; stem cells; differentiation; osteogenesis; chondrogenesis; biophysical stimulation; pulsed electromagnetic field; differentiation ability; signaling
Special Issue Information
Dear Colleagues,
The concept of stem cells originated at the end of the 19th century because of the ability of certain tissues (blood, skin, etc.) to self-renew during their lifetime. Several years later, these cells were identified and isolated. Since then, methods for mesenchymal stem cell (MSC) isolation, characterization, expansion in culture and evaluation of differentiation abilities have been impressively investigated. In the last 5 years alone, more than 33,102 papers have reported information on MSCs. MSCs have a crucial role in skeletal tissue regeneration. Due to their osteogenic and chondrogenic potential, they have acquired a prominent role in tissue engineering and regenerative medicine for bone and cartilage tissues. Most studies remain focused on bone marrow MSCs (BMSCs), although it is now known that MSCs are present in several other adult tissues. In spite of the growing knowledge, several questions still remain open: the identification of the optimal cellular source, the molecular basis for MSC population heterogeneity among tissue sources, parts of the body, as well as different donors and cell phenotypes, the optimization of the expansion and differentiation protocols to achieve stable osteogenic and chondrogenic phenotypes, and the impact of senescence. In addition, signaling pathways, epigenetic regulation and cell-to-cell communications still need to be clarified. We welcome submissions, including original papers and reviews, on these open questions. It is expected that these findings may help to favor skeletal tissue repair and optimize MSC use to efficiently manage joint disease.
Prof. Dr. Monica de Mattei
Guest Editor
Manuscript Submission Information
Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.
Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. International Journal of Molecular Sciences is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.
Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. There is an Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal. For details about the APC please see here. Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.
Keywords
- stem cells
- differentiation
- osteogenesis
- chondrogenesis
- markers of differentiation
- epigenetic regulation
- stem cell heterogeneity
- stem cell senescence