Vasc Spec Int.
2014 Mar;30(1):11-18.
Tracking the Fate of Muscle-derived Stem Cells: an Insight into the Distribution and Mode of Action
- Affiliations
-
- 1Department of Surgery, Seoul National University College of Medicine, Seoul, Korea. tslee@snubh.org
- 2Department of Surgery, Seoul National University Bundang Hospital, Seongnam, Korea.
- 3Department of Surgery, Chosun University Hospital, Chosun University School of Medicine, Gwangju, Korea.
- 4Department of Surgery, Seoul Metropolitan Government-Seoul National University Boramae Medical Center, Seoul, Korea.
Abstract
- PURPOSE
To examine the fate of muscle-derived stem cells (MDSC) after injection into different host conditions and provide an insight for their mechanism of action.
MATERIALS AND METHODS
MDSCs differentiated in vitro towards the endothelial lineage and transfected with lentivirus tagged with green fluorescent protein (GFP) were injected into two animal models mimicking vascular diseases: hindlimb ischemia and carotid injury models. Injected cells were tracked at the site of injection and in remote organs by harvesting the respective tissues at different time intervals and performing immunofluorescent histological analyses. Stem cell survival was quantified at the site of injection for up to 4 weeks.
RESULTS
MDSCs were successfully tagged with fluorescent material GFP and showed successful implantation into the respective injection sites. These cells showed a higher affinity to implant in blood vessel walls as shown by double fluorescent co-stain with CD31. Quantification of stem cell survival showed a time-dependent decrease from day 3 to 4 weeks (survival rate normalized against day 3 was 72.0% at 1 week, 26.8% at 2 weeks and 2.4% at 4 weeks). Stem cells were also fo und in distant organs, especially the kidneys and liver, which survived up to 4 weeks.
CONCLUSION
MDSCs were successfully tracked in different vascular disease models, and their fate was assessed in terms of cell survival and distribution. Better understanding of the donor cell properties, including their interaction with the host conditions and their mechanism of action, are needed to enhance cell survival and achieve improved outcomes.
