Curcumin-Activated Mesenchymal Stem Cells Derived from Human Umbilical Cord and Their Effects on MPTP-Mice Model of Parkinson's Disease: A New Biological Therapy for Parkinson's Disease

The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of human umbilical cord mesenchymal stem cell activated by curcumin (hUC-MSCs-CUR) on Parkinson's disease (PD). The hUC-MSCs-CUR was transplanted into the MPTP-induced PD mouse models via the tail vein. We found that hUC-MSCs-CUR significantly improved the motor ability, increased the tyrosine hydroxylase (TH), dopamine (DA), and Bcl-2 levels, and reduced nitric oxide synthase, Bax, and cleaved-caspase 3 expression in PD mice. The supernatant of hUC-MSCs-CUR (CM-CUR) was used to stimulate the SH-SY5Y cellular model of PD; cell proliferation, differentiation, TH, and neuronal-specific marker microtubular associated protein 2 (MAP2) expressions were examined. Results showed that CM-CUR significantly promoted cell proliferation and gradually increased TH and MAP2 expression in SH-SY5Y PD cells. The beneficial effects could be associated with significant increase of rough endoplasmic reticulum in the hUC-MSCs-CUR, which secrete many cytokines and growth factors beneficial for PD treatment. Therefore, transplantation of hUC-MSCs-CUR could show promise for improving the motor recovery of PD. Funding Statement: This study was supported by Shangdong province nature and science funding, ZR2019MH065. Declaration of Interests: The authors declare no competing financial interests. Ethics Approval Statement: All the animal experiments described in this study and umbilical cord tissue collection were approved by the Ethics Committee of the 148th Hospital and the second affiliated hospital of Zhengzhou University.