ABSTRACT
Mesenchymal stem cells (MSC) are derived from the mesoderm, and exhibit multipotential differentiation. MSC can alleviate liver fibrosis and improve liver function through paracrine cytokines and cell-cell interactions, but their therapeutic mechanism remains unknown. MSC are derived from various tissues, such as bone marrow, umbilical cord tissue, umbilical cord blood, peripheral blood, and adipose tissue. However, there are different advances in MSC with various sources in experimental studies and clinical treatment of liver fibrosis. This paper summarizes the possible therapeutic mechanisms of MSC in alleviating liver fibrosis, as well as the advances in experimental studies and clinical application of MSC with various sources. MSC transplantation is a new therapeutic method for liver fibrosis and has a broad application prospect in this field.