Adipose-Derived Stromal/Stem Cells

Isolation methods, proliferation, and adipogenic differentiation of adipose-derived stem cells from different fat depots in bovines

The adipose-derived stem cells (ASCs) are a valuable resource for regenerative medicine and essential materials for research in fat deposition. However, the isolation procedure of ASCs has not been standardized and needs to be harmonized; differences in proliferation and adipogenic differentiation of ASCs obtained from different fat depots have not been well characterized. In the present study, we compared the efficiency of ASCs isolation by enzymatic treatment and explant culture methods and the proliferation ability and adipogenic differentiation potential of ASCs isolated from subcutaneous and visceral fat depots. The explant culture method was simple and with no need for expensive enzymes while the enzymatic treatment method was complex, time consuming and costly. By the explant culture method, a larger number of ASCs were isolated from subcutaneous and visceral fat depots. By contrast, fewer ASCs were obtained by the enzymatic treatment method, especially from visceral adipose. ASCs isolated by the explant culture method performed well in cell proliferation and adipogenic differentiation, though they were slightly lower than those by the enzymatic treatment method. ASCs isolated from visceral depot demonstrated higher proliferation ability and adipogenic differentiation potential. In total, the explant culture method is simpler, more efficient, and lower cost than the enzymatic treatment method for ASCs isolation; compared with visceral adipose, subcutaneous adipose is easier to isolate ASCs; however, the visceral ASCs are superior to subcutaneous ASCs in proliferation and adipogenic differentiation.

Electromagnetic field-mediated chitosan/gelatin/nano-hydroxyapatite and bone-derived scaffolds regulate the osteoblastic and chondrogenic phenotypes of adipose-derived stem cells to construct osteochondral tissue engineering niche in vitro

It is critical to explore the effects of electromagnetic field (EMF) on the construction of functional osteochondral tissue, which has shown certain clinical significance for the treatment of osteochondral injury. At present, there are few studies on the effect of the direction of EMF on cells. This study aimed to investigate the effects of EMF coupling on different parameters to control adipose-derived stem cells (ADSCs) proliferation and specific chondrogenic and osteogenic differentiation at 2D level and 3D level. The proliferation and differentiation of EMF-induced ADSCs are jointly regulated by EMF and space structure. In this study, Cs7/Gel3/nHAP scaffolds were prepared with good degradation rate (86.75 ± 4.96 %) and absorb water (1100 %), and the pore size was 195.63 ± 54.72 μm. The bone-derived scaffold with a pore size of 267.17 ± 129.18 μm was obtained and its main component was hydroxyapatite. Cs7/Gel3/nHAP scaffolds and bone-derived scaffolds are suitable as 3D level materials. The optimal EMF intensity was 2 mT for chondrogenic differentiation and proliferation and 1 mT for osteogenic differentiation and proliferation. It is noteworthy that EMF has a negative correlation with ADSCs proliferation in the vertical direction at 2D level, while it has a positive correlation with ADSCs proliferation at 3D level. EMF mediated 3D osteochondral scaffold provide good strategy for osteochondral tissue engineering construction.

Recent advances in exosomal non-coding RNA-based therapeutic approaches for photoaging

BACKGROUND

Photoaging is a degenerative biological process that affects the quality of life. It is caused by environmental factors including ultraviolet radiation (UVR), deep skin burns, smoking, active oxygen, chemical substances, and trauma. Among them, UVR plays a vital role in the aging process.

AIM

With the continuous development of modern medicine, clinical researchers have investigated novel approaches to treat aging. In particular, mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs), non-coding RNAs are involved in various physiological processes have broad clinical application as they have the advantages of convenient samples, abundant sources, and avoidable ethical issues.

METHODS

This article reviews research progress on five types of stem cell, exosomes, non-coding RNA in the context of photoaging treatment: adipose-derived stem cell, human umbilical cord MSCs, epidermal progenitor cells, keratinocyte stem cells, and hair follicle stem cells (HFSCs). It also includes stem cell related exosomes and their non-coding RNA research.

RESULTS

The results have clinical guiding significance for prevention and control of the onset and development of photoaging. It is found that stem cells secrete cytokines, cell growth factors, non-coding RNA, exosomes and proteins to repair aging skin tissues and achieve skin rejuvenation. In particular, stem cell exosomes and non-coding RNA are found to have significant research potential, as they possess the benefits of their source cells without the disadvantages which include immune rejection and granuloma formation.

Lipedema Research-Quo Vadis?

When studying the current literature, one might get the impression that lipedema is a "modern" disease, with increasing incidence and augmenting prevalence throughout Western countries during the last decade. However, a quick look into older textbooks shows that disproportionate accumulation of fat in female bodies has long been known without being recognized as an independent disease. Nevertheless, it was not until 1940 that Allen and Hines described a "syndrome characterized by fat legs and orthostatic edema" in a seminal publication. The mere awareness that people who have lipedema are not just overweight but suffer from a yet poorly defined pathological condition, may be considered a decisive leap forward in the understanding of lipedema. A number of comprehensive publications have since dealt with the clinical presentation of lipedema and have provided the first clues towards the potential pathological mechanisms underlying its initiation and progression. Nevertheless, despite all effort that has been undertaken to unravel lipedema pathology, many questions have remained unanswered. What can be deduced with certainty from all experimental and medical evidence available so far is that lipedema is neither a cosmetic problem nor is it a problem of lifestyle but should be accepted as a serious disease with yet undetermined genetic background, which makes women's lives unbearable from both a physical and psychological point of view. To date, results from clinical inspections have led to the categorization of various types and stages of lipedema, describing how the extremities are affected and evaluating its progression, as demonstrated by skin alterations, adipose tissue volume increase and physical and everyday-behavioral impediments. There is accumulating evidence showing that advanced stages of lipedema are usually accompanied by excessive weight or obesity. Thus, it is not unreasonable to assume that the progression of lipedema is largely driven by weight gain and the pathological alterations associated with it. Similarly, secondary lymphedema is frequently found in lipedema patients at advanced stages. Needless to say, both conditions considerably blur the clinical presentation of lipedema, making diagnosis difficult and scientific research challenging. The present literature review will focus on lipedema research, based on evidence fromex vivo and in vitro data, which has accumulated throughout the last few decades. We will also open the discussion as to whether the currently used categorization of lipedema stages is still sufficient and up-to-date for the accurate description of this enigmatic disease, whose name, strangely enough, does not match its pathologic correlate.

Micro-fragmented adipose tissue cellular composition varies by processing device and analytical method

Autologous adipose-derived biologics are of clinical interest based on accessibility of adipose tissue, a rich source of progenitor and immunomodulatory cells. Micro-fragmented adipose tissue (MFAT) preserves the cellular niche within intact extracellular matrix, potentially offering benefit over enzymatically-liberated stromal vascular fraction (SVF), however lack of standardized analyses complicate direct comparison of these products. In this study, MFAT from LipoGems® and AutoPose™ Restore systems, which utilize different washing and resizing methods, was analyzed for cellular content using different techniques. Flow cytometry was performed on SVF, with or without culture, and on the adherent cell population that naturally migrated from undigested MFAT. Cytokine release during culture was also assessed. SVF contained more diverse progenitor populations, while MFAT outgrowth contained lower cell concentrations of predominantly mesenchymal stromal cells (MSC). MSCs were significantly higher in MFAT from the AutoPose System for all analyses, with increased cytokine secretion characterized by high levels of anti-inflammatory and low to non-detectable inflammatory cytokines. These results demonstrate that cellularity depends on MFAT processing methods, and different techniques can be employed to evaluate graft cellularity. Comparisons of cell concentrations determined via these methods could be used to better interpret inter-study variability.

Efficacy and safety of autologous adipose tissue-derived stromal vascular fraction in patients with thin endometrium: a protocol for a single-centre, longitudinal, prospective self-control study

INTRODUCTION

Endometrial thickness is an important parameter to evaluate endometrial receptivity. An appropriate endometrial thickness is necessary for both embryo implantation and maintaining normal pregnancy. Women with thin endometrium are one of the critical challenges in the clinic, and current therapeutic strategies for thin endometrium remain suboptimal. The stromal vascular fraction (SVF) derived from adipose tissue contains a variety of cells, mainly adipose-derived stem/stromal cells and adipose cells. Recently, adipose tissue-derived SVF showed tremendous potential for treating thin endometrium due to its capacity to repair and regenerate tissues. The application of SVF in animal models for treating thin endometrium has been investigated. However, limited evidence has demonstrated the efficacy and safety of autologous SVF in patients with thin endometrium.

METHODS AND ANALYSIS

This study is a single-centre, longitudinal, prospective self-control study to investigate the preliminary efficacy and safety of autologous SVF in improving the pregnancy outcome of infertile patients with thin endometrium. Thirty patients diagnosed with thin endometrium will be recruited based on the inclusion and exclusion criteria. The SVF suspension will be transferred into the uterine cavity via an embryo transfer catheter. Then, comparisons between pretreatment and post-treatment will be analysed, and the outcomes, including endometrial thickness, menstrual volume and duration, frequency and severity of adverse events and early pregnancy outcomes, will be measured within a 3-month follow-up, while late pregnancy outcomes and their offspring will be followed up via telephone for 2 years. The proportion of patients with improved symptoms will be calculated and compared.

ETHICS AND DISSEMINATION

This study was approved by the Ethics Committee of Peking University Third Hospital (reference number: REC2020-165). Written informed consent will be provided for patients before being included. The results will be presented at academic conferences and a peer-reviewed journal.

TRIAL REGISTRATION NUMBER

ChiCTR2000035126.

Cell and Cell Free Therapies in Osteoarthritis

Osteoarthritis (OA) is the most common articular disease in adults and has a current prevalence of 12% in the population over 65 years old. This chronic disease causes damage to articular cartilage and synovial joints, causing pain and leading to a negative impact on patients' function, decreasing quality of life. There are many limitations regarding OA conventional therapies-pharmacological therapy can cause gastrointestinal, renal, and cardiac adverse effects, and some of them could even be a threat to life. On the other hand, surgical options, such as microfracture, have been used for the last 20 years, but hyaline cartilage has a limited regeneration capacity. In recent years, the interest in new therapies, such as cell-based and cell-free therapies, has been considerably increasing. The purpose of this review is to describe and compare bioregenerative therapies' efficacy for OA, with particular emphasis on the use of mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) and platelet-rich plasma (PRP). In OA, these therapies might be an alternative and less invasive treatment than surgery, and a more effective option than conventional therapies.

Effect of biomolecules derived from human platelet-rich plasma on the ex vivo expansion of human adipose-derived mesenchymal stem cells for clinical applications

Mesenchymal stem cells are a tool in cell therapies but demand a large cell number per treatment, for that, suitable culture media is required which contains fetal bovine serum (FBS). However, for cell-based therapy applications, the use of FBS is problematic. Several alternatives to FBS have been explored, including human derivatives from platelet-rich plasma (hD-PRP). Although various studies have evaluated the impact of hD-PRP on MSC proliferation and differentiation, few of them have assessed their influence on processes, such as metabolism and gene expression. Here, we cultured human adipose-derived MSCs (hAD-MSCs) in media supplemented with either 10% hD-PRP (hD-PRP-SM) or 10% FBS (FBS-SM) in order to characterize them and evaluate the effect of hD-PRP on cell metabolism, gene expression of associated regenerative factors, as well as chromosome stability during cell expansion. We found that hAD-MSCs cultured in hD-PRP-SM have a greater cell elongation but express similar surface markers; in addition, hD-PRP-SM promoted a significant osteogenic differentiation in the absence of differentiation medium and increased the growth rate, maintaining chromosomal stability. In terms of cell metabolic profile, hAD-MSC behavior did not reveal any differences between both culture conditions. Conversely, significant differences in collagen I and angiopoietin 2 expression were observed between both conditions. The present results suggest that hD-PRP may influence hAD-MSC behavior.