Bone marrow cell-based regenerative therapy for liver cirrhosis

Bone marrow cells are capable of differentiation into liver cells. Therefore, transplantation of bone marrow cells has considerable potential as a future therapy for regeneration of damaged liver tissue. Autologous bone marrow infusion therapy has been applied to patients with liver cirrhosis, and improvement of liver function parameters has been demonstrated. In this review, we summarize clinical trials of regenerative therapy using bone marrow cells for advanced liver diseases including cirrhosis, as well as topics pertaining to basic in vitro or in vivo approaches in order to outline the essentials of this novel treatment modality.