The first in vitro study testing the effect of a natural mixture extract of quality elk velvet antler (QEVA) on the development of bone marrow-derived mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) is reported. To examine cellular responses, MSCs were seeded on gold-coated glass surfaces and grown in a medium supplemented with QEVA extract or with the osteogenic agent dexamethasone (Dex), or in unsupplemented medium as control. The MSCs were analyzed by light microscopy and confocal Raman microspectroscopy at different time intervals in the culture. The microscopy revealed that the proliferation, up to day 4, of cells treated with QEVA is higher than that of cells treated with Dex or of the control group. Raman spectroscopy revealed deposition of hydroxyapatite (HA) mineral by cells exposed to QEVA and HA precursors in cells treated with Dex, but no mineralization in the control group. The extent of mineralization for MSCs treated with QEVA increased systematically with time, up to day 14. These results indicate that QEVA enhances proliferation and promotes differentiation toward osteogenic fate more effectively than Dex, suggesting that addition of QEVA to culture media might be advantageous to bone-tissue-engineering implications.

In this study, micro-Raman spectroscopy was used, for the first time, to detect spectral changes between healthy and diseased skin tissues with bullous pemphigoid (BP). The spectral changes provide information about the biochemical alterations between normal skin and blistered and nonblistered regions in samples diagnosed histopathologically as BP. Raman spectra, characterized by many peaks, revealed the molecular composition of the different skin layers, stratum corneum, epidermis and dermis of normal skin. Comparison of spectra monitored at the dermoepidermal junction (DEJ) of healthy skin with those of blisters caused by BP showed evidence for large variations in the amide I and III regions. The alterations of the protein content, amide I and III, are a result of the appearance of immunoglobulin G (IgG) and fibrin, characteristics of BP. Indication for the disease at early stages was obtained from changes in protein content, evidenced in the measured spectra assisted by cluster analysis. The method employed here can contribute to the nearly real-time diagnosis and to a better understanding of the physical and biomolecular processes effected by BP, and might have implications on other skin diseases.