Akademik Veri Yönetim Sistemi
9th International Congress of the Molecular Biology Association of Turkey, İzmir, Türkiye, 12 - 14 Eylül 2024, ss.106
P063
Characterization of Fetal Umbilical Cord-derived Stem Cells and Comparison with Adult Bone Marrow MSCs
Şimal Şenocak1, 2, Necef Özbek1, 2, Mehmet Emin Şeker1, 2, Özgür Doğuş Erol1, 2, Umutcan Kayıkçı3 , Özgür Deren3 , Fatima Aerts Kaya1, 2
1 Hacettepe University Dept of Stem Cell Sciences, Ankara, Türkiye
2 Hacettepe University Center For Stem Cell Research and Development, Ankara, Türkiye
3 Hacettepe University Medical Faculty, Dept of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Division of Maternal Fetal Medicine, Ankara, Türkiye
Background/Aim: The umbilical cord (UC) contains different types of fetal stem cells, derived from distinct germ layers, that can be easily isolated and expanded without any ethical concerns. Among these, the UC mesenchymal stromal/stem cells (MSCs) are the most well-known and characterized cells. In contrast, few studies have assessed the UC lining epithelial cells (CLECs) for their stemness and differentiation potential. Here, we aimed to characterize fetal tissue-derived UC-MSCs and CLECs to reveal potential differences for their use in regenerative medicine and to compare the data with adult bone marrow (BM) MSCs.
Materials and Methods: The UCs obtained from healthy newborns were used for isolation of UCMSCs and CLECs and cultured. UC-MSCs, BM-MSCs, and CLECs were assessed using flow cytometry for expression of the hematopoietic markers CD34 and CD45, epithelial marker CD54, MSC markers CD73, CD90, CD105, and immune modulation-related marker CD200. RT-qPCR was performed to assess the expression of pluripotency related genes hTERT, OCT3/4, SOX2, and NANOG, epithelial cell markers p63 and CK19. Normalization was done using GAPDH.
Results: Whereas UC-MSCs expressed high levels of CD73, CD90, CD105, and CD200 (>90%) and were negative for the hematopoietic markers CD45 and CD34 (<2%), CLECs expressed high levels of CD73, CD90, and CD105 (>90%), intermediate levels of CD54 and CD200 (>50%). Gene expression analysis indicated that both CLECs and UC-MSCs display a more immature genotype with increased expression of hTERT, OCT3/4, SOX2, and NANOG in comparison to BM-MSCs. Differences in CK19 and p63 expression between the fetal tissue stem cells were not significant, indicating that overall fetal tissue stem cells show distinct, but overlapping characteristics in both phenotype and genotype, that are clearly distinct from adult tissue stem cells.
Conclusion: Fetal tissue-derived UC-MSCs and CLECs express higher levels of pluripotency genes in comparison to adult BM-MSCs and show overlapping expression of cell surface markers. Keywords: cord lining epithelial cells, umbilical cord mesenchymal stem cells, bone marrow stem cells, pluripotency