Assessment of umbilical cord tissue as a source of mesenchymal stem cell/endothelial cell mixtures for bone regeneration. (September 2013)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Kouroupis, Dimitrios; Churchman, Sarah M; English, Anne; Emery, Paul; Giannoudis, Peter V; McGonagle, Dennis; Jones, Elena A
• Is Part Of: Regenerative medicine. Volume 8:Number 5(2013)
• Page Start: 569
• Page End: 581
• Publication Date: 2013-09
• Subjects: bone marrow -- bone regeneration -- endothelial cells -- mesenchymal stem cells -- umbilical cord; Cellular therapy -- Periodicals; Stem cells -- Transplantation -- Periodicals; Degeneration (Pathology) -- Treatment -- Periodicals; Regeneration (Biology) -- Periodicals; 611.018
• DOI: 10.2217/rme.13.47
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 1746-0751

Abstract

Aim: To enumerate and characterize mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) and endothelial cells (ECs) in umbilical cord (UC) tissue digests.Materials & methods: Cultured UC cells were characterized phenotypically, and functionally by using 48-gene arrays. Native MSCs and ECs were enumerated using flow cytometry.Results: Compared with bone marrow (BM) MSCs, UC MSCs displayed significantly lower (range 4–240-fold) basal levels of bone-related transcripts, but their phenotypes were similar (CD73 +, CD105 +, CD90 +, CD45 - and CD31 - ). UC MSCs responded well to osteogenic induction, but day 21 postinduction levels remained below those achieved by BM MSCs. The total yield of native UC MSCs (CD90 +, CD45 - and CD235α - ) and ECs (CD31 +, CD45 - and CD235α - ) exceeded 150 and 15 million cells/donation, respectively. Both UC MSCs and ECs expressed CD146.Conclusion: While BM MSCs are more predisposed to osteogenesis, UC tissue harbors large numbers of MSCs and ECs; such minimally manipulated 'off-the-shelf' cellular mixtures can be used for regenerating bone in patients with compromised vascular supply.