Regenerative Medicine for Muscle Disorders: Advances and Challenges Ahead
摘要
Regenerative medicine offers promising avenues for treating muscle disorders by replacing defective cells and promoting muscle repair. Understanding the interplay between muscle stem cells and their microenvironment is critical for developing effective therapies. Muscle degeneration can arise from age-related conditions such as sarcopenia or genetic disorders like Duchenne and Limb-Girdle Muscular Dystrophy (LGMD), the most prevalent myopathies in populations with a high rate of consanguinity. Current treatment strategies primarily manage symptoms rather than addressing underlying causes, imposing a significant healthcare burden, particularly in regions like North Africa. While novel 3D muscle cell modeling strategies and nanoparticles pave the way toward next-generation regenerative medicine, these techniques still need improvement. This chapter provides a comprehensive overview of key advancements regarding emerging regenerative approaches, notably cellular therapies, including mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs), myogenic precursor cells (MPCs), and exosome-based therapies that have gained attention as potential nanocarriers for drug delivery. We also provide an overview of cutting-edge biofabrication, used currently for disease modeling. Challenges behind these approaches, including logistical and infrastructural barriers in low- and middle-income countries (LMICS), were also discussed.