Side-by-Side Comparison of the Biological Characteristics of Human Umbilical Cord and Adipose Tissue-Derived Mesenchymal Stem Cells

Jingqiong Hu,Abhilasha Khanal,Weixiang Ouyang,Li Hu,Jiajia Zhao,Luyang Du,Jiarong Liu,Niya Gong,Chao Yang,Lili Chen

doi:10.1155/2013/438243

Abstract

Both human adipose tissue-derived mesenchymal stem cells (ASCs) and umbilical cord-derived mesenchymal stem cells (UC-MSCs) have been explored as attractive mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) sources, but very few parallel comparative studies of these two cell types have been made. We designed a side-by-side comparative study by isolating MSCs from the adipose tissue and umbilical cords from mothers delivering full-term babies and thus compared the various biological aspects of ASCs and UC-MSCs derived from the same individual, in one study. Both types of cells expressed cell surface markers characteristic of MSCs. ASCs and UC-MSCs both could be efficiently induced into adipocytes, osteoblasts, and neuronal phenotypes. While there were no significant differences in their osteogenic differentiation, the adipogenesis of ASCs was more prominent and efficient than UC-MSCs. In the meanwhile, ASCs responded better to neuronal induction methods, exhibiting the higher differentiation rate in a relatively shorter time. In addition, UC-MSCs exhibited a more prominent secretion profile of cytokines than ASCs. These results indicate that although ASCs and UC-MSCs share considerable similarities in their immunological phenotype and pluripotentiality, certain biological differences do exist, which might have different implications for future cell-based therapy.

Highlights

Stem cells are self-renewable and capable of differentiating into at least two distinctive cell types
Most of the primary adipose tissue-derived mesenchymal stem cells (ASCs) adhered within 24 hours after plating and demonstrated polygonal or round morphology, and the cells stretched out pseudopodia and displayed similar fibroblastlike or spindle-shaped morphology around 2 days
ASC-CM and UC-Mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs)-CM contained a variety of cytokines secreted by cells [27]; we found that the types of cytokines were nearly the same in ASC-CM and umbilical cord-derived mesenchymal stem cells (UC-MSCs)-CM through protein microarray analysis, but the differences existed in expression levels of cytokines

Summary

Introduction

Stem cells are self-renewable and capable of differentiating into at least two distinctive cell types. Mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) are a population of stem cells, widely present in a large number of tissues including bone marrow, adipose tissue, umbilical cord blood and the cord itself, brain, liver, muscle, dental pulp, skin, and fetal tissues [1,2,3,4,5,6]. Owing to their multipotentiality, rapid proliferation, and strong capacities for self-renewal, mesenchymal stem cells hold great promise for tissue engineering and are suitable seed cells for future cell therapy. The isolation procedure is invasive and may lead to complications and morbidity [8]; it is necessary to find an alternative source of MSCs that have functions similar to the BMSCs but overcome these key limitations and portray a part of successful alternative

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Conclusion