Category Archives: Mesenchymal Stem Cells

Introduction: What are stem cells, and why are they important? What are the unique properties of all stem cells? What are embryonic stem cells? What are adult stem cells? What are the similarities and differences between embryonic and adult stem cells? What are induced pluripotent stem cells? What are the potential uses of human stem cells and the obstacles that must be overcome before these potential uses will be realized? Where can I get more information? An adult stem cell is thought to be an undifferentiated cell, found among differentiated cells in a tissue or organ that can renew itself and can differentiate to yield some or all of the major specialized cell types of the tissue or organ. The primary roles of adult stem cells in a living organism are to maintain and repair the tissue in which they are found. Scientists also use the term somatic stem cell instead of adult stem cell, where somatic refers to cells of the body (not the germ cells, sperm or eggs). Unlike embryonic stem cells, which are defined by their origin (cells from the preimplantation-stage embryo), the origin of adult stem cells in some mature tissues is still under investigation. Research … Continue reading →

Cell isolation Due to the low frequency at which mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) occur in tissues, it may be desirable to enrich for MSCs from a mixed cell population. No single, unique marker allowing for MSC isolation has been reported, but rather a range of composite cell surface phenotypes are utilized. Consequently, typical isolation methods employ a strategy of enrichment via depletion of undesired cell types. Cell isolation kits are available to obtain untouched mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) from human bone marrow or mouse compact bone or selection of CD271+ MSCs from human bone marrow. The colony-forming unit - fibroblast (CFU-F) assay is used to quantify functional mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs). MesenCult media are optimized for the quantification of MSCs using the CFU-F assay. In culture, mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) are defined as plastic-adherent, fibroblast-like cells which are able to self-renew and differentiate into bone, adipose and cartilage tissue. Optimized reagents are available for the differentiation of MSCs to adipocytes and osteogenic progenitors. STEMCELL Technologies provides both serum-containing (for human and mouse cells) and serum-free (for human cells) MesenCult media which are optimized for efficient expansion of MSCs in culture. Fetal bovine sera (FBS) are rigorously screened and selected based … Continue reading →

Medistem Panama - Inside our adult stem cell laboratory. Take a trip to our 8000 sq. ft. facility located in the prestigious City of Knowledge in Panama. See inside our 3 class 10000 clean rooms and go under one of... By: http://www.cellmedicine.com … Continue reading →

The Regenexx family ofnon-surgical stem cell and blood platelet procedures offer next-generation injection treatments for those who are suffering from knee pain or may be facing knee surgery or knee replacement due to common tendon, ligament and bone injuries, arthritis and other degenerative conditions. A Regenexx patient receives a knee injection using advanced imaging guidance (fluoroscopy) If you have encountered an injury to the knee meniscus, knee cartilage, ACL or MCL ligaments, or have chronic knee pain due to a past injury or osteoarthritis (also known as degenerative joint disease or wear and tear arthritis of the knee), you may be a candidate for a Regenexx stem cell or blood platelet procedure. Traditional options for patients suffering from these issues include arthroscopic knee surgery to repair ligament tears, or total knee joint replacement. With both surgeries, months of rehab are required, and the patient must be aware of and prepared to take on the risks. As a knee surgery or knee replacement alternative, the Regenexx procedures may help alleviate knee pain and the conditions that cause it with a simple office injection procedure. Patients are encouraged to walk the same day, and most experience little to no down time from … Continue reading →

Pittenger MF, Mackay AM, Beck SC, Jaiswal RK, Douglas R, Mosca JD, Moorman MA, Simonetti DW, Craig S, Marshak DR: Multilineage potential of adult human mesenchymal stem cells. Science 1999, 284:143-147. PubMedAbstract | PublisherFullText Di Nicola M, Carlo-Stella C, Magni M, Milanesi M, Longoni PD, Matteucci P, Grisanti S, Gianni AM: Human bone marrow stromal cells suppress T-lymphocyte proliferation induced by cellular or nonspecific mitogenic stimuli. Blood 2002, 99:3838-3843. PubMedAbstract | PublisherFullText da Silva Meirelles L, Chagastelles PC, Nardi NB: Mesenchymal stem cells reside in virtually all post-natal organs and tissues. J Cell Sci 2006, 119:2204-2213. PubMedAbstract | PublisherFullText Horwitz EM, Prockop DJ, Fitzpatrick LA, Koo WW, Gordon PL, Neel M, Sussman M, Orchard P, Marx JC, Pyeritz RE, Brenner MK: Transplantability and therapeutic effects of bone marrow-derived mesenchymal cells in children with osteogenesis imperfecta. Nat Med 1999, 5:309-313. PubMedAbstract | PublisherFullText Williams AR, Trachtenberg B, Velazquez DL, McNiece I, Altman P, Rouy D, Mendizabal AM, Pattany PM, Lopera GA, Fishman J, Zambrano JP, Heldman AW, Hare JM: Intramyocardial stem cell injection in patients with ischemic cardiomyopathy: functional recovery and reverse remodeling. Circ Res 2011, 108:792-796. PubMedAbstract | PublisherFullText | PubMedCentralFullText Read more here: Transplantation Research | Full text | … Continue reading →

Abstract Although it is generally accepted that osteoarthritis is a degenerative condition of the cartilage, other tissues such as synovium in which immunological and inflammatory reactions occur contribute to the development of joint pathology. This sheds new light on the potential mechanism of action of mesenchymal stem cell therapy in osteoarthritis. Rather than tissue repair due to local transformation of injected mesenchymal stem cells to chondrocytes and filling defects in cartilage, such treatment might suppress synovial activation and indirectly ameliorate cartilage damage. Desando and co-workers report in Arthritis Research & Therapy that intra-articular delivery of adipose-derived stem cells attenuates progression of synovial activation and joint destruction in osteoarthritis in an experimental rabbit model. Clinical studies are warranted to see whether this approach might be a novel way to combat development of joint destruction in inflammatory subtypes of osteoarthritis. Although it is generally accepted that the primary effect of stem cell treatment occurs through tissue-specific differentiation, new data suggest that the therapeutic potential of these cells might also be related to their paracrine effect [1,2]. Clinically, patients with osteoarthritis (OA) express variable synovitis. Thickening of the lining layer containing predominantly macrophages that exhibit an activated phenotype is found within a substantial … Continue reading →

Abstract Introduction Mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) are adult, multipotent, stem cells with immunomodulatory properties. The mechanisms involved in the capacity of MSCs to inhibit the proliferation of proinflammatory T lymphocytes, which appear responsible for causing autoimmune disease, have yet to be fully elucidated. One of the underlying mechanisms studied recently is the ability of MSCs to generate T regulatory (Treg) cells in vitro and in vivo from activated peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC), T-CD4+ and also T-CD8+ cells. In the present work we investigated the capacity of MSCs to generate Treg cells using T-CD4+ cells induced to differentiate toward the proinflammatory Th1 and Th17 lineages. MSCs were obtained from mouse bone marrow and characterized according to their surface antigen expression and their multilineage differentiation potential. CD4+ T cells isolated from mouse spleens were induced to differentiate into Th1 or Th17 cells and co-cultured with MSCs added at day 0, 2 or 4 of the differentiation processes. After six days, CD25, Foxp3, IL-17 and IFN- expression was assessed by flow cytometry and helios and neuropilin 1 mRNA levels were assessed by RT-qPCR. For the functional assays, the conditioned subpopulation generated in the presence of MSCs was cultured with concanavalin A-activated CD4+ … Continue reading →

Abstract Introduction Umbilical cord blood (UCB)-derived mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) are self-renewing multipotent progenitors with the potential to differentiate into multiple lineages of mesoderm, in addition to generating ectodermal and endodermal lineages by crossing the germline barrier. In the present study we have investigated the ability of UCB-MSCs to generate neurons, since we were able to observe varying degrees of neuronal differentiation from a few batches of UCB-MSCs with very simple neuronal induction protocols whereas other batches required extensive exposure to combination of growth factors in a stepwise protocol. Our hypothesis was therefore that the human UCB-MSCs would contain multiple types of progenitors with varying neurogenic potential and that the ratio of the progenitors with high and low neurogenic potentials varies in different batches of UCB. In total we collected 45 UCB samples, nine of which generated MSCs that were further expanded and characterized using immunofluorescence, fluorescence-activated cell sorting and RT-PCR analysis. The neuronal differentiation potential of the UCB-MSCs was analyzed with exposure to combination of growth factors. We could identify two different populations of progenitors within the UCB-MSCs. One population represented progenitors with innate neurogenic potential that initially express pluripotent stem cell markers such as Oct4, Nanog, Sox2, ABCG2 … Continue reading →

Stefan Scheding - Mesenchymal Stem Cells and Cellular Therapies Interview wtth Stefan Scheding, researcher at Lund Stem Cell Center. By: Medicinska Fakulteten, LU … Continue reading →

What Is Stem Cell Therapy? Get The Candy Coated Illustration - Dr. Bill Johnson, Dallas http://www.InnovationsStemCellCenter.com (214) 699-6948 Find out just how your own body's stem cells can help you build new cells that have been damaged. SVF... By: dallasdrj … Continue reading →