Human Wharton’s jelly-derived mesenchymal stem cells prevent pregnancy loss in a rat by JAK/STAT-mediated immunomodulation

Abstract

Abstract Spontaneous abortion (SA) is a syndrome with many origins. Among them, immune imbalance is a major risk factor for SA. Wharton's jelly-mesenchymal stem cells (WJ-MSCs) are considered to be able to prevent abortion. However, the underlining molecular signaling pathways and regulatory mechanisms of WJ-MSCs in pregnancy maintenance are poorly understood. Here abortion mode is established by subcutaneous injection of bromocriptine in rat on day 9 and abortion prevention is achieved by WJ-MSCs injection via tail vein with or without JAK/STAT inhibitor. Here, we show that WJ-MSCs significantly lower the rate of embryo resorption of spontaneous abortion by reducing Th1-related cytokines while increasing Th2 and Th3-related cytokines in JAK/STAT-dependent manner. Together, our observation of WJ-MSCs in spontaneous abortion prevention will shed new light on potential therapeutic strategy development.