# Overexpression of IL‐10 in Adipose Mesenchymal Stem Cells Promotes Wound Healing in Diabetic Mice

**Authors:** Hui Zhao, Feng Song, Long Ouyang, Xiao Shi, Shuai Shang

PMC · DOI: 10.1155/sci/8861898 · Stem Cells International · 2026-01-28

## TL;DR

Overexpressing IL-10 in adipose stem cells improves wound healing in diabetic mice by reducing inflammation and boosting cell migration.

## Contribution

Demonstrates that IL-10 overexpression in adipose mesenchymal stem cells enhances diabetic wound healing through anti-inflammatory and pro-migratory effects.

## Key findings

- IL-10 overexpression in ADSCs promotes M2 macrophage polarization and reduces proinflammatory cytokines.
- ADSC-IL10 enhances fibroblast and epidermal cell migration to wound sites in diabetic mice.
- ADSC-IL10 increases growth factor production, aiding wound healing in diabetic models.

## Abstract

Diabetic ulcers are serious chronic wounds that are challenging to heal and can lead to amputation or even death. This study aims to utilize interleukin‐10 (IL‐10) overexpressing adipose mesenchymal stem cells to investigate their potential in promoting the healing of diabetic ulcers and to explore their mechanism of action.

The analysis of stem cell characteristics of ADSC‐IL10 was performed through flow cytometry, cell scratch assay, MTT assay, and adipogenic and osteogenic differentiation assays. The detection of the M1 and M2 phenotypes of mouse peritoneal macrophages (RAW 264.7) under conditioned medium stimulation was carried out using qPCR technology. The assessment of the effects of conditioned media from ADSCs overexpressing IL‐10 (ADSC‐IL10 CM) and conditioned media from adipose‐derived stem cells (ADSC CM) on the migration of normal skin fibroblasts and human immortalized epidermal cells was done using Transwell and cell scratch methods. A diabetic mouse model was induced using a high‐fat/high‐sugar diet plus streptozotocin (STZ) to detect the number of M2 macrophages and the expression levels of inflammatory factors (IL‐1β, IL‐6, IL‐10, and MCP‐1) and growth factors (EGF, VEGF, and TGFβ‐1) in mouse skin tissue.

The overexpression of IL‐10 did not change the biological properties of ADSCs. In diabetic mice, the transplantation of IL‐10 overexpressing ADSCs for wound healing was more effective than the transplantation of ADSCs alone. ADSCs overexpressing IL‐10 promoted the expression of M2 macrophages marker; inhibited the secretion of proinflammatory factors such as IL‐1β, IL‐6, and MCP‐1; and enhanced the production of growth factors including EGF, TGFβ‐1, and VEGF. Furthermore, it facilitated the migration of skin fibroblasts and epidermal cells from diabetic mice to the wound site.

ADSCs that overexpress IL‐10 promote wound healing in diabetic mice by reducing inflammatory responses, enhancing growth factor secretion, and increasing the migration of fibroblasts and epidermal cells.

## Linked entities

- **Genes:** IL10 (interleukin 10) [NCBI Gene 3586], IL1B (interleukin 1 beta) [NCBI Gene 3553], IL6 (interleukin 6) [NCBI Gene 3569], IL10 (interleukin 10) [NCBI Gene 3586], CCL2 (C-C motif chemokine ligand 2) [NCBI Gene 6347], EGF (epidermal growth factor) [NCBI Gene 1950], VEGFA (vascular endothelial growth factor A) [NCBI Gene 7422], TGFB1 (transforming growth factor beta 1) [NCBI Gene 7040]
- **Chemicals:** streptozotocin (PubChem CID 29327)
- **Species:** Mus musculus (taxon 10090)

## Full-text entities

- **Genes:** Il1b (interleukin 1 beta) [NCBI Gene 16176] {aka IL-1beta, Il-1b}, Tgfb1 (transforming growth factor, beta 1) [NCBI Gene 21803] {aka TGF-beta1, TGFbeta1, Tgfb, Tgfb-1}, Vegfa (vascular endothelial growth factor A) [NCBI Gene 22339] {aka L-VEGF, Vegf, Vpf}, Egf (epidermal growth factor) [NCBI Gene 13645], Il6 (interleukin 6) [NCBI Gene 16193] {aka Il-6}, Mcpt1 (mast cell protease 1) [NCBI Gene 17224] {aka Mcp-1}, Il10 (interleukin 10) [NCBI Gene 16153] {aka CSIF, If2a, Il-10}
- **Diseases:** inflammatory (MESH:D007249), Diabetic (MESH:D003920), death (MESH:D003643), Diabetic ulcers (MESH:D017719)
- **Chemicals:** MTT (MESH:C070243), STZ (MESH:D013311), sugar (MESH:D000073893)
- **Species:** Homo sapiens (human, species) [taxon 9606], Mus musculus (house mouse, species) [taxon 10090]

## Full text

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## Figures

17 figures with captions in the complete paper: https://tomesphere.com/paper/PMC12848790/full.md

## References

40 references — full list in the complete paper: https://tomesphere.com/paper/PMC12848790/full.md

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Source: https://tomesphere.com/paper/PMC12848790