Differentiation of Pluripotent Stem Cells into Nucleus Pulposus Progenitor Cells for Intervertebral Disc Regeneration

Low back pain (LBP) is one of the world’s most common musculoskeletal diseases and is frequently associated with intervertebral disc degeneration (IDD). While the main cause of IDD is commonly attributed to a reduced number of nucleus pulposus (NP) cells, current treatment strategies (both surgical and more conservative) fail to replenish NP cells or reverse the pathology. Cell replacement therapies are an attractive alternative for treating IDD. However, injecting intervertebral disc (IVD) cells, chondrocytes, or mesenchymal stem cells into various animal models of IDD indicate that transplanted cells generally fail to survive and engraft into the avascular IVD niche. Whereas pluripotent stem cells (PSCs), including induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) and embryonic stem cells (ESCs), hold great potential for revolutionizing regenerative medicine, current protocols for differentiating these cells into NP-like cells are inadequate. Nucleus pulposus progenitor cells (NPPCs), which are derived from the embryonic notochord, can not only survive within the harsh hypoxic environment of the IVD, but they also efficiently differentiate into NP-like cells. Here we provide an overview of the latest progress in repairing degenerated IVDs using PSCs and NPPCs. We also discuss the molecular pathways by which PSCs differentiate into NPPCs in vitro and in vivo and propose a new, in vivo IDD therapy.