Wang SF, Peng XW. Letter to the Editor: Metabolic reprogramming - unlocking the full potential of stem cell therapy in wound repair. World J Stem Cells 2026; 18(8): 118193 [DOI: 10.4252/wjsc.118193]
Corresponding Author of This Article
Xiang-Wen Peng, PhD, Research Dean, Central Laboratory, Hunan Provincial Key Laboratory of Regional Hereditary Birth Defects Prevention and Control, Changsha Hospital for Maternal & Child Health Care Affiliated to Hunan Normal University, No. 416 East Chengnan Road, Yuhua District, Changsha 410001, Hunan Province, China. pxw1237@163.com
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Cell Biology
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letter
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Wang SF, Peng XW. Letter to the Editor: Metabolic reprogramming - unlocking the full potential of stem cell therapy in wound repair. World J Stem Cells 2026; 18(8): 118193 [DOI: 10.4252/wjsc.118193]
World J Stem Cells. Aug 26, 2026; 18(8): 118193 Published online Aug 26, 2026. doi: 10.4252/wjsc.118193
Letter to the Editor: Metabolic reprogramming - unlocking the full potential of stem cell therapy in wound repair
Si-Feng Wang, Xiang-Wen Peng
Si-Feng Wang, Xiang-Wen Peng, Central Laboratory, Hunan Provincial Key Laboratory of Regional Hereditary Birth Defects Prevention and Control, Changsha Hospital for Maternal & Child Health Care Affiliated to Hunan Normal University, Changsha 410001, Hunan Province, China
Author contributions: Wang SF and Peng XW jointly conceived the idea and outline of this manuscript; Wang SF drafted the initial manuscript; Peng XW critically revised the manuscript for intellectual content, scientific accuracy, and language clarity. Both authors approved the final version of the manuscript and agree to be accountable for all aspects of the work.
Supported by the Clinical Medical Technology Demonstration Base for Genetic Research of Fetal Congenital Heart Disease in Hunan Province, No. 2021SK4036; Natural Science Foundation of Hunan Province, No. 2023JJ30063; Changsha Science and Technology Bureau Natural Science Surface Project, No. kq2202030 and No. kh2201045; and National Natural Science Foundation of China, No. 32070817.
Conflict-of-interest statement: All the authors report no relevant conflicts of interest for this article.
Corresponding author: Xiang-Wen Peng, PhD, Research Dean, Central Laboratory, Hunan Provincial Key Laboratory of Regional Hereditary Birth Defects Prevention and Control, Changsha Hospital for Maternal & Child Health Care Affiliated to Hunan Normal University, No. 416 East Chengnan Road, Yuhua District, Changsha 410001, Hunan Province, China. pxw1237@163.com
Received: December 28, 2025 Revised: January 22, 2026 Accepted: February 27, 2026 Published online: August 26, 2026 Processing time: 237 Days and 6 Hours
Abstract
The study by Dilimulati et al published in the World Journal of Stem Cells offers an elegant and powerful solution to the “Achilles’ heel” of stem cell therapy: Poor post-transplantation survival. The authors demonstrate that a simple pretreatment with alpha-ketoglutarate activates hypoxia-inducible factor-1α, a master metabolic switch, endowing adipose-derived stem cells with dual survival advantages: A “shield” enhances antioxidant defence via glutamine metabolism, and “sustenance” glycogen reserves to counteract energy crises. This “two birds, one stone” strategy is not only mechanistically clear and logically robust but also holds exceptional clinical translatability. Compared to complex genetic engineering, metabolic preconditioning is safe, cost-effective, and easily standardized, allowing seamless integration into existing stem cell therapeutic workflows. The profound significance of this work lies in its paradigm shift from focusing on cell quantity to prioritizing cell quality, offering a conceptually novel strategy in regenerative medicine where precise metabolic tuning enhances therapeutic efficacy.
Core Tip: This article reinterprets the seminal work by Dilimulati et al to propose that α-ketoglutarate-mediated metabolic preconditioning represents a transformative strategy in regenerative medicine. By stabilizing hypoxia-inducible factor-1α, α-ketoglutarate simultaneously enhances redox homeostasis through glutamine-to-glutathione conversion and sustains bioenergetics via glycogen storage, offering adipose-derived stem cells a dual survival shield against the hostile wound microenvironment. This approach transcends conventional cell therapy limitations and charts a clinically feasible path toward precision regenerative medicine.
