{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,10,8]],"date-time":"2026-10-08T20:06:07Z","timestamp":1791489967293,"version":"4.3.4"},"reference-count":41,"publisher":"MDPI AG","issue":"2","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2023,1,5]],"date-time":"2023-01-05T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1672876800000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"funder":[{"name":"National Research Foundation of Korea (NRF)","award":["2020R1A2B5B01002407"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["2020R1A2B5B01002407"]}]}],"content-domain":{"domain":[],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":["IJMS"],"abstract":"<jats:p>Sj\u00f6gren\u2019s syndrome (SS) is a systemic autoimmune disease delineated by chronic lymphocytic infiltrates into the lacrimal or salivary glands, leading to severe dry eye and dry mouth. Mesenchymal stem cells have been shown to be effective in treating numerous autoimmune diseases. This study aimed to illustrate the effects of mesenchymal stem cells on the attenuation of dry eyes (DE) through the inhibition of autophagy markers in a SS mouse model. NOD\/ShiLtJ female mice with developed DE were treated with either subconjunctival or lacrimal gland injections of hMSCs (Catholic MASTER Cells). After maintenance for 14 days, clinical DE markers such as tear secretion and corneal staining were observed, as well as goblet cell counts in the conjunctiva, infiltration of inflammatory foci, B and T cells, and autophagy markers in the lacrimal glands. Proinflammatory cytokine expressions of the cornea and conjunctiva, as well as the lacrimal glands, were examined. Clinical markers, such as tear secretion and corneal stain scores, goblet cell counts in the conjunctiva, and foci infiltrations in the lacrimal glands were attenuated in mice treated with subconjunctival or lacrimal gland injections of hMSCs compared to the PBS-treated control group. B cell marker B220 decreased in the lacrimal glands of hMSCs-treated mice, as well as reduced proinflammatory cytokine expressions in the lacrimal glands and cornea. Notably, expression of autophagy markers ATG5 and LC3B-II, as well as HIF-1\u03b1 and mTOR which play roles in the pathways of autophagy modulation, were shown to be attenuated in the lacrimal glands of hMSCs-treated mice compared to the PBS-treated control mice. Treatment with hMSCs by lacrimal gland or subconjunctival injection demonstrated the alleviation of DE through the repression of autophagy markers, suggesting the therapeutic potentials of hMSCs in a SS mouse model.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.3390\/ijms24021039","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2023,1,5]],"date-time":"2023-01-05T05:29:48Z","timestamp":1672896588000},"page":"1039","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3390\/mdpi_crossmark_policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":22,"title":["The Effect of Mesenchymal Stem Cells on Dry Eye in Sjogren Syndrome Mouse Model"],"prefix":"10.3390","volume":"24","author":[{"given":"Soojung","family":"Shin","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Ophthalmology and Visual Science, Catholic Institute of Visual Science, Seoul St. Mary\u2019s Hospital, College of Medicine, The Catholic University of Korea, Seoul 06591, Republic of Korea"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Seul-Gi","family":"Yoon","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Ophthalmology and Visual Science, Catholic Institute of Visual Science, Seoul St. Mary\u2019s Hospital, College of Medicine, The Catholic University of Korea, Seoul 06591, Republic of Korea"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Miso","family":"Kim","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Ophthalmology and Visual Science, Catholic Institute of Visual Science, Seoul St. Mary\u2019s Hospital, College of Medicine, The Catholic University of Korea, Seoul 06591, Republic of Korea"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Eun Jeong","family":"Cheon","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Ophthalmology and Visual Science, Catholic Institute of Visual Science, Seoul St. Mary\u2019s Hospital, College of Medicine, The Catholic University of Korea, Seoul 06591, Republic of Korea"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Youngseo","family":"Jeon","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Ophthalmology and Visual Science, Catholic Institute of Visual Science, Seoul St. Mary\u2019s Hospital, College of Medicine, The Catholic University of Korea, Seoul 06591, Republic of Korea"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Hyun Jung","family":"Lee","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Ophthalmology and Visual Science, Catholic Institute of Visual Science, Seoul St. Mary\u2019s Hospital, College of Medicine, The Catholic University of Korea, Seoul 06591, Republic of Korea"},{"name":"Department of Biochemical Engineering, Seoil University, Seoul 06591, Republic of Korea"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"So-Hyang","family":"Chung","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Ophthalmology and Visual Science, Catholic Institute of Visual Science, Seoul St. Mary\u2019s Hospital, College of Medicine, The Catholic University of Korea, Seoul 06591, Republic of Korea"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]}],"member":"1968","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2023,1,5]]},"reference":[{"key":"ref_1","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"321","DOI":"10.1016\/S0140-6736(05)66990-5","article-title":"Sj\u00f6gren\u2019s syndrome","volume":"366","author":"Fox","year":"2005","journal-title":"Lancet"},{"key":"ref_2","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"2545","DOI":"10.1093\/rheumatology\/key332","article-title":"B cells in Sj\u00f6gren\u2019s syndrome: From pathophysiology to therapeutic target","volume":"60","author":"Mielle","year":"2021","journal-title":"Rheumatology (Oxford)"},{"key":"ref_3","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"89","DOI":"10.1111\/j.1365-2249.2012.04606.x","article-title":"Selective localization of T helper subsets in labial salivary glands from primary Sj\u00f6gren\u2019s syndrome patients","volume":"169","author":"Maehara","year":"2012","journal-title":"Clin. 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