Human Umbilical Vein Mesenchymal Stem Research Articles

Production of hepatocyte-like cells from human umbilical vein mesenchymal stem cells.

The human umbilical vein, as a readily available stem cell source, is a good alternative to harvest mesenchymal stem cells. Human umbilical cord vein mesenchymal stem cells have recently been isolated and have demonstrated the ability to differentiate into various cell types such as fat, bone, cartilage and neuronal cells. In this study, we have investigated whether human umbilical cord vein mesenchymal stem cells are also able to differentiate into hepatocyte-like cells. Hepatic differentiation was performed with a 2-step protocol and the use of hepatocyte growth factor and oncostatin M for cell culture. During four weeks of induction, most cells displayed a cuboidal morphology. Immunological analysis indicated that umbilical cord vein mesenchymal stem cells-derived hepatocyte-like cells expressed liver-specific protein markers such as albumin and cytokeratin-18. The hepatocyte-like cells also displayed several characteristics of hepatocytes, including expression of transthyretin, glucose 6-phosphatase, cytokeratin-8,18, alpha-fetoprotein, hepatocyte nuclear factor-3β and albumin. The result of indocyanine green cell uptake, as a test substance to evaluate hepatocyte-like cell function, was positive for differentiated cells. Glycogen storage was examined by periodic acid-Schiff staining. Accumulation of intracellular glycogen was detected in the hepatocyte-like cells. Based on these observations, we have concluded that umbilical cord vein mesenchymal stem cells are endowed with hepatogenic potential and may provide a stem cell source to be used as cell therapy for liver diseases.

137P In vitro differentiation of human umbilical vein mesenchymal stem cells into hepatocyte-like cells

Human umbilical vein, as a readily available source of stem cells, is one of the good alternative source for mesenchymal stem cells. Human umbilical cord vein mesenchymal stem cells (UVMSCs) have been recently isolated and demonstrated the ability to differentiate into various cell types such as fat, bone, cartilage and neuronal cells. In this study, we have investigated whether human UVMSC are also able to differentiate into hepatocyte-like cells. Hepatic differentiation was done with a 2-step protocol and with the use of hepatocyte growth factor and oncostatin M. The cells were cultured with hepatocyte growth factor (HGF) and oncostatin M (OSM). During 4 weeks of induction most of the cells displayed a cuboidal morphology. Immunological analysis indicated that UVMSCs-derived hepatocyte-like cells expressed liver-specific protein markers such as albumin (ALB) and cytokeratin-18 (CK-18). The hepatocyte-like cells also displayed several characteristics of hepatocytes, including expression of transthyretin, glucose-6-phosphatase (G6P), cytokeratin-8,18 (CK-8,18), alpha-fetoprotein (AFP), hepatocyte nuclear factor-3β (AFP) and ALB. The result of indocyanine green (ICG) cell uptake as a test substance to evaluate hepatocyte-like cells function was positive for differentiated cells. Glycogen storage was examined by periodic acid–Schiff (PAS) staining and accumulation of intracellular glycogen were detected in hepatocyte-like cells. Based on these observations it can be concluded that UVMSCs encompass suitable hepatogenic potential which may provide a source of stem cells for cell therapy in liver diseases.

Human Umbilical Vein-Derived Dopaminergic-Like Cell Transplantation with Nerve Growth Factor Ameliorates Motor Dysfunction in a Rat Model of Parkinson’s Disease

Mesenchymal stem cells are capable of differentiating into dopaminergic-like cells, but currently no report has been available to describe the induction of human umbilical vein mesenchymal stem cells (HUVMSCs) into dopaminergic-like cells. In this study, we induced HUVMSCs in vitro into neurospheres constituted by neural stem-like cells, and further into cells bearing strong morphological, phenotypic and functional resemblances with dopaminergic-like cells. These HUVMSC-derived dopaminergic-like cells, after grafting into the brain of a rat model of Parkinson's disease (PD), showed a partial therapeutic effect in terms of the behavioral improvement. Nerve growth factor was reported to improve the local microenvironment of the grafted cells, and we therefore further tested the effect of dopaminergic-like cell grafting combined with nerve growth factor (NGF) administration at the site of cell transplantation. The results showed that NGF administration significantly promoted the survival of the grafted cells in the host brain and enhanced the content of dopaminergic in the local brain tissue. Behavioral test demonstrated a significant improvement of the motor function of the PD rats after dopaminergic-like cell grafting with NGF administration as compared with that of rats receiving the cell grafting only. These results suggest that transplantation of the dopaminergic-like cells combined with NGF administration may represent a new strategy of stem cell therapy for PD.