Table 1 The potential immunoregulatory mechanisms of MSCs in improving the prognosis of LT

Mouse

N/A

Bone marrow

1 × 10⁶

Mouse

Suppress Kupffer cell apoptosis, Th1/Th17 immune responses, chemokine expression and inflammatory cell infiltration

Alleviate liver graft injury; upregulate the survival rate of animals with LT

[70]

Rat

N/A

Bone marrow

2.5 × 10⁵

Rat

Inhibit the proliferation of CD4+ T cells and activation of CD8+ T cells; upregulate the levels of TGF-β1, FoxP3, IL-10, and CTLA-4

Attenuate the rejection rate of LT

[71]

Human

N/A

Umbilical cord

1 × 10⁶/kg body weight

Human

Activate Tregs; inhibit Th17 cells; increase the expression levels of TGF-β1 and PGE2

Decrease the alanine aminotransferase level; improve allograft histology

[72]

Rat

N/A

Bone marrow

1 × 10⁷

Rat

Downregulate the levels of Th1/Th2 ratio-associated cytokines; upregulate IL-10; decrease the expression levels of IL-6, IL-17, IL-23, and TNF-α; increase the expression level of TGF-β; activate Th2 and Treg cells; inhibit the activation of Th1 and Th17 cells

Reduce the acute rejection and improve the survival rate of allogeneic LT recipients

[73]

Rat

N/A

Bone marrow

2 × 10⁶

Rat

Activate CD4+CD25+Foxp3+ Tregs

Inhibit allograft rejection; prolong the survival time of LT rats

[74]

Rat

N/A

Bone marrow

1 × 10⁶/200 g

Rat

Reduce liver graft rejection and IL-12 levels; upregulate the levels of TGF-α₁ and IL-10

Improve liver functions and survival times of rats with LT

[75]

Rat

N/A

Adipose

2.0 × 10⁶

Rat

Downregulate liver impairment and hepatocyte apoptosis; upregulate peripheral Tregs; elevate the expression levels of PCNA, IL-10 and TGF-β1; decrease the expression levels of IL-2 and IL-17

Reduce rejection rate; prolong survival time of the allograft

[76]

Rat

N/A

Bone marrow

2 × 10⁶

Rat

Upregulate PD-L1 expression; downregulate miR-17-5p

Eliminate liver allograft rejection; improve the median survival time of LT recipients

[77]

Swine

N/A

Adipose

1.0 × 10⁶

Rat

Hepatogenic differentiation of MSCs

Protect the function of liver grafts from warm ischemia/reperfusion injury; improve the viability of liver grafts

[82]

Rat

IFN-γ

Bone marrow

5 × 10⁶

Rat

Upregulate the levels of PDL-1, MHC-I, MHC-II, and CD54 and boost the immunosuppressive ability of MSCs

Alleviate acute immunologic rejection of liver grafts

[83]

Rat

Overexpression of TGF

Bone marrow

5 × 10⁶

Rat

Activate Tregs; inactivate Th17 cells

Prevent rejection of liver grafts; reduce the mortality rate of rats with LT

[84]

Rat

Overexpression of IL-10

Bone marrow

2.5 × 10⁵

Rat

Increase the expression of RORγt; decrease the expression level of FoxP3 in MSCs; downregulate the secretion of cytokines such as IL-17, IL-23, IL-6, IFN-γ and TNF-α; upregulate the secretion of cytokines such as IL-10 and TGF-β1

Prolong the mean survival time of LT rats; decrease the Banff scheme grading scores of LT rats

[85]

Rat

Overexpression of HO-1

Bone marrow

1 × 10⁷

Rat

Upregulate the levels of anti-inflammatory factors and peripheral Tregs; downregulate the levels of proinflammatory factors and NK cell viability

Upregulate the median survival time; decrease the rejection activity index

[86]

Rat

Overexpression of HO-1

Bone marrow

5 × 10⁶

Rat

Upregulate the levels of autophagy-related proteins; activate the ERK/mTOR signaling pathway

Protect against liver grafts in the reduced-size liver transplantation rat model

[87]

Rat

Overexpression of HO-1

Bone marrow

1 × 10⁶/kg

Rat

Improve the microcirculation of hepatic sinusoids; recover the energy metabolism of damaged hepatocytes

Attenuate the pathological changes and rejection rate of the transplanted liver grafts in LT models

[88]

Rat

Overexpression of HO-1

Bone marrow

5 × 10⁶

Rat

Upregulate the levels of IL-10 and TGF-β; downregulate the levels of IL-2, IL-6, IL-17, IL-23, TNF-α, and IFN-γ

Improve the liver functions and survival rates of LT recipients; reduce the degree of rejection and apoptotic cells

[89]