Melanocyte progenitor cells reside in human subcutaneous adipose tissue.

Yuri Ikeda,Mutsumi Yokota,Masato Koike,Toshio Hasegawa,Akino Wada,Shigaku Ikeda,Gianpaolo Papaccio

doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0256622

Yuri Ikeda, Mutsumi Yokota + Show 5 more

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0256622

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Journal: PloS one	Publication Date: Aug 25, 2021
Citations: 9	License type: CC BY 4.0

Affiliation: Juntendo University

Abstract

Based on the assumption that some progenitor cells in an organ might reside in neighboring adipose tissue, we investigated whether melanocyte progenitor cells reside in human subcutaneous adipose tissue. First, we examined the expression of human melanoma black 45 (HMB45) and microphthalmia-associated transcription factor (MITF) in undifferentiated adipose-derived stem cells (ADSCs) by immunostaining, RT-PCR, and western blotting. These two markers were detected in undifferentiated ADSCs, and their expression levels were increased in differentiated ADSCs in melanocyte-specific culture medium. Other melanocytic markers (Melan A, MATP, Mel2, Mel EM, tyrosinase, KIT, and PAX3) were also detected at variable levels in undifferentiated ADSCs, and the expression of some markers was increased during differentiation into the melanocyte lineage. We further showed that ADSCs differentiated in melanocyte-specific culture medium localized in the basal layer and expressed tyrosinase and HMB45 in a 3D epidermal culture system. Melanin deposits were also induced by ultraviolet-light-B (UVB) irradiation. These results demonstrate that melanocyte progenitor cells reside in human subcutaneous adipose tissue and that these cells might have the potential to differentiate into mature melanocytes. Melanocyte and keratinocyte progenitors residing in human subcutaneous tissue can be used for the treatment of skin diseases and skin rejuvenation in the future.

Highlights

Adipose-derived stem cells (ADSCs) are very useful in regenerative medicine because of their ease of isolation and potential to differentiate into multilineage cells
The heterogeneity of adipose-derived mesenchymal stem cells could be caused by many different reasons that may play an important role in cell yield and growth, such as different isolation protocols, different media and culture conditions, liposuction localization, method of adipose tissue isolation, age or body mass index (BMI) [1, 3]
All ADSCs were purchased from different companies

Summary

Introduction

Adipose-derived stem cells (ADSCs) are very useful in regenerative medicine because of their ease of isolation and potential to differentiate into multilineage cells. After melanoblasts enter the lateral pathway, they migrate subectodermally at the same time as the dermatome undergoes an epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition into the dermis [8] This suggests that some melanocyte progenitors could remain and reside in subcutaneous adipose tissue during embryogenesis. Based on the assumption that some progenitor cells in an organ (e.g., skin) might reside in neighboring adipose tissue (e.g., subcutaneous adipose tissue), we previously identified keratinocyte progenitor cells in human subcutaneous adipose tissue [9] and found that these cells could express higher levels of type VII collagen under specific culture conditions [10] Based on these theories and observations, we expected that there might be melanocyte progenitor cells in ADSCs

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