Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) is the most common medically treatable cause of female infertility. Several treatment methods have been proposed to treat this syndrome but nowadays researchers used cell therapy as the best treatment method, looking for a better way to treat it. Cell therapy is a treatment based on stem cells and mesenchymal stem/stromal cells (MSCs) are known as promising candidates for it. The secretome of these cells contains growth factors, cytokines and extracellular vesicles (exosomes (EXOs), microvesicles and apoptotic bodies), which are effective in the treatment of PCOS. The present study aimed to investigate the effect of EXOs extracted from human embryonic stem cells (hESCs) derived MSCs on PCOS in an animal model.
16 adult female Wistar rats were randomly divided into 3 groups of control (C), polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS), test (T). After induction of PCOS in PCOS and T groups using letrozole (LTZ) (1mg/kg) dissolved in normal saline (2ml/kg), T group was treated with intra ovarian injection of EXOs. At the end of the treatment period, the amounts of Testosterone in blood serum were measured and a histomorphometric examination of the ovary was done using a caliper and Hematoxylin and Eosin (H&E) staining.
The weight and size of ovaries significantly increased in the PCOS group compared to C group and significantly decreased in T group. Also, Testosterone level in T group was significantly lower than those of the PCOS group. Moreover, the improvement of the histopathological status of the ovaries in T group along with the decrease in the number of cystic follicles and the increase in the number of corpora lutea were evident in PCOS group.
Our data indicated that EXOs can be considered as a medicinal product to improve PCOS.