Generation of Mesenchymal Stem Cells from Human Umbilical Cord Tissue and their Differentiation into the Skeletal Muscle Lineage

Summary

We describe a protocol for the isolation of mesenchymal stem cells from human umbilical cord tissue and their differentiation into the skeletal muscle lineage.

Abstract

Exploring the therapeutic potential of mesenchymal stem cells is contingent upon the ease of isolation, potency toward differentiation, and the reliability and robustness of the source. We describe here a stepwise protocol for the isolation of mesenchymal stem cells from human umbilical cord tissue (uMSCs), their immunophenotyping, and the propagation of such cultures over several passages. In this procedure, the viability of the uMSCs is high because there is no enzymatic digestion. Further, the removal of blood vessels, including the umbilical cord arteries and the vein, ensures that there is no contamination of cells of endothelial origin. Using flow cytometry, uMSCs upon isolation are CD45⁻CD34⁻, indicating an absence of cells from the hematopoietic lineage. Importantly, they express key surface markers, CD105, CD90, and CD73. Upon establishment of cultures, this paper describes an efficient method to induce differentiation in these uMSCs into the skeletal muscle lineage. A detailed analysis of myogenic progression in differentiated uMSCs reveals that uMSCs express Pax7, a marker for myogenic progenitors in the initial stages of differentiation, followed by the expression of MyoD and Myf5, and, finally, a terminal differentiation marker, myosin heavy chain (MyHC).

Introduction

The human umbilical cord has been credited to possess a robust reservoir of mesenchymal stem cells, which are currently being explored for regenerative therapies due to their robust proliferation and differentiation rates, immunomodulatory properties, and ability to generate cells from all the three germ layers¹. The umbilical cord tissue consists of multiple compartments such as the umbilical cord blood, the umbilical vein subendothelium, and the Wharton's jelly (WJ), which in itself encompasses three indistinct regions-the perivascular zone, the intervascular zone, and the sub-amnion or the cord lining (CL)². While uMS....

Protocol

The use of umbilical cord tissue in this study was approved by the Institutional Committee for Stem Cell Research (IC-SCR), the Institutional Ethics Committee, Translational Health Science and Technology Institute (IEC-THSTI), the Institutional Ethics Committee of Civil Hospital, Gurugram, Haryana, and the Institutional Biosafety Committee, THSTI. Human cord tissue samples were harvested from term deliveries at the time of birth. Informed written consent was obtained from subjects . All methods were carried out in accordance with relevant guidelines and regulations.

1. Isolation of MSCs from cord tissue

1. At the t....

Results

The success of isolation of uMSCs from cord tissue is >95%, unlike the poor rates of success from whole cord blood. Upon successful isolation of uMSCs, FACS analysis reveals that all the cells are CD34⁻CD45⁻CD105⁺CD90⁺. However, in comparative analysis, uMSCs isolated from cord blood display heterogeneous populations, wherein a proportion of cells show CD34⁺CD45⁺CD105⁺ (~15%). Additionally, double-positive CD105⁺CD90⁺ ar.......

Discussion

Critical steps
A critical step in this protocol is the collection of tissue under aseptic conditions, from the time of delivery to the maintenance of sterile cultures, for the entire duration of propagation. During cord collection, it is essential that the cord does not touch any non-sterilized surface and is externally swabbed with 70% ethanol before collection in tubes containing PBS supplemented with antibiotics. It is important to limit the time between cord collection and processing of the tis.......

Materials

List of materials used in this article

Name	Company	Catalog Number	Comments
4',6-diamidino-2-phenylindole (DAPI)	Thermo Fisher Scientific	D1306
Amphotericin B	Sigma Aldrich	A2411
Antibiotic solution 100x Liquid, endotoxin tested (10,000 U Penicillin and 10 mg Streptomycin/mL in 0.9% normal saline)	HiMedia	A001A-50mL
Anti-GAPDH antibody	Sigma Aldrich	G8795
Anti-MyHC antibody (My32)	Novus Biologicals	NBP2-50401AF647
Anti-MyoD antibody (5.8A)	Novus Biologicals	NB100-56511
Anti-Myogenin antibody (Clone F5D)	Novus Biologicals	NBP2-34616AF594
Anti-Pax7 antibody	DSHB	DSHB-C1-576
APC Mouse anti-human CD90 clone 5E10	BD Biosciences	559869
Collagen Type 1	Merck	C8919
D (+) Glucose	Sigma Aldrich	G7021
Dexamethasone	SIGMA	D4902
FACSCanto II or FACSAria III	BD Biosciences
Fetal Bovine Serum, qualified Brazil	GIBCO	10270106	not to be heat-inactivated
FITC Mouse anti-human CD106 clone 51-10C9	BD Biosciences	551146
FITC Mouse anti-human CD14 clone M5E2	BD Biosciences	557153
FITC Mouse anti-human CD31 clone WM59	BD Biosciences	557508
FITC Mouse anti-human CD34 clone 581	BD Biosciences	555821
FITC Mouse anti-human CD45 clone HI30	BD Biosciences	555482
FITC Mouse anti-human CD49D clone 9F10	BD Biosciences	560840
FITC Mouse anti-human CD90 clone 5E10	BD Biosciences	555595
FITC Mouse anti-human HLA-A,B,C clone G46-2.6	BD Biosciences	557348
FITC Mouse anti-human IgG clone G18-145	BD Biosciences	555786
FlowJo software	BD Biosciences
Gentamicin	Sigma Aldrich	G1264
Horse serum	HiMedia	RM1239
Hydrocortisone	Merck	H4001
Laminin	Merck	L2020
MEM Alpha Modification without L-glutamine, ribo- and deoxyribonucleosides	Hyclone	SH30568.FS	Basal medium for uMSCs
PE Mouse anti-human CD105 clone 266	BD Biosciences	560839
PE Mouse anti-human CD44 clone 515	BD Biosciences	550989
PE Mouse anti-human CD49E clone llA1	BD Biosciences	555617
PE Mouse anti-human IgG clone G18-145	BD Biosciences	555787
PE-Cy7 Mouse anti-human CD73 CLONE AD2	BD Biosciences	561258
Phosphate buffered saline (PBS), pH=7.4	HiMedia	M1866
Trypsin/EDTA solution (1x 0.25% Trypsin and 0.02% EDTA in Hanks Balanced Salt Solution (HBSS)	HiMedia	TCL049-100mL