The effect of mesenchymal stem cell donor age on the density of the pia microvascular network in the cerebral cortex of old recipient rats

Abstract

We transplanted syngenetic bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells (BM MSCs) obtained from 3- to 4-month-old or 20- to 22-month-old donors into the brain of 22- to 24-month-old male Wistar–Kyoto rats. Using a TV device to study microcirculation in vivo, we found that transplantation of BM MSCs from young donors increased the densities of the microvascular network in the pia mater of the sensorimotor cortex and of the arteriolar compartment in old rats approximately by values of 1.9 and 2.1 as compared to agematched controls. Transplantation of BM MSCs from old donors did not significantly influence the density of the microvascular network in the pia mater, while the density of the arteriolar compartment increased by approximately 1.5 times.