Engineering Mesenchymal Stem Cells using Electroporation

Despite an encouraging safety profile emerging from the large number of clinical trials carried out, only a relatively small number of MSC-based products have been approved globally to date. It is likely that the next generation of MSC cell therapy products will need to be engineered in order to enhance functionality and/or persistence in vivo and thus advance the field. Non-viral methods of cargo delivery, such as electroporation, are of interest for cell engineering as safety concerns remain with viral vectors. To ensure the success of future non-viral MSC engineering studies it will be critical for researchers to understand the principles and challenges associated with techniques such as electroporation. Here, the basic principles of electroporation are presented along with an discussion of critical parameters and the impact of these parameters on cell health and functionality. A review of the literature is also presented to assess the current state of the art in electroporation-mediated delivery to MSCs. This review highlights the diversity in the field and underscores the need for a standardised approach in terms of reporting of methods and selection of assays to assess cell viability and functionality.