Call to Stop Using the Term “Mesenchymal Stem Cell”

Critics say the misleading term actually refers to a heterogeneous population of cells, including possible tissue-specific progenitor cells and nonstem cells all lumped together.

Written byAbby Olena, PhD

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In 2017, scientific journals published more than 3,500 papers using the words “mesenchymal stem cells,” according to an op-ed that appears in Nature today (September 26). The term initially described cells from bone marrow, but its usage has expanded to encompass many types of cells from diverse tissues with varying levels of multipotency. The problem is what a mesenchymal stem cell (MSCs) is isn’t always clearly defined, which has led to confusion in the scientific community, as well as public misunderstandings exploited by businesses marketing questionable cell-based treatments, the authors argue.

“The name mesenchymal stem cells should not be used for anything. It’s just a completely bogus name,” commentary coauthor Pamela Robey, a stem cell biologist at the National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research in Bethesda, Maryland, tells The Scientist. “There are tissue-specific stem progenitor cells, which are wonderful things [and] get tossed into the ...

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Meet the Author

Abby Olena, PhD
As a freelancer for The Scientist, Abby reports on new developments in life science for the website. She has a PhD from Vanderbilt University and got her start in science journalism as the Chicago Tribune’s AAAS Mass Media Fellow in 2013. Following a stint as an intern for The Scientist, Abby was a postdoc in science communication at Duke University, where she developed and taught courses to help scientists share their research. In addition to her work as a science journalist, she leads science writing and communication workshops and co-produces a conversational podcast. She is based in Alabama.
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