Comparison of Two ASC-Derived Therapeutics in an In Vitro Osteoarthritis Model: Secretome Versus Extracellular Vesicles

The study compared the therapeutic potential of adipose-derived stem/stromal cell secretome (ASC-CM) and extracellular vesicles (EV) in an in vitro osteoarthritis (OA) model. Human articular chondrocytes were treated with ASC-CM or EV, both derived from 5 × 10^5 cells, to assess effects on hypertrophic, catabolic, and inflammatory markers. Results indicated that ASC-CM had a higher therapeutic potential than EV, as it significantly decreased MMP activity by 22% and 29% after 3 and 6 days, respectively, and reduced PGE2 expression by up to 40% at day 6. Both treatments reduced the hypertrophic marker COL10A1 by approximately 30%. The findings suggested that ASC-CM could be a promising cell-free therapeutic option for OA management.