Background and Objectives:Variety of pathological factors including viral hepatitis, alcohol and drug abuse, metabolic diseases, autoimmune diseases and congenital abnormalities can cause hepatic injury. Liver transplantation is the treatment of choice for end-stage liver diseases, however, it faces several difficulties. So the aim of the work is to evaluate the effect of bone marrow derived mesenchymal stem cells (BM-MSCs) on the liver structure in carbon tetra chloride CCL4 induced liver fibrosis in rats.Materials and Results:BM-MSCs were isolated and characterized from long bones of twenty male albino rats. Sixty female rats were divided into the following two groups: Group I; thirty rats which were the control group. Group II; thirty rats were injected intra-peritoneal (IP) by CCL4 twice weekly for four weeks and was further subdivided into the following three subgroups: Subgroup IIA (CCL4 alone); included ten rats which were sacrificed after this four weeks. Subgroup IIB (CCL4/MSCs); included ten rats which were IP injected by a single dose of BM-MSCs and were sacrificed after four weeks. Subgroup IIC (CCL4/recovery); included ten rats which were left for another four weeks without any intervention. Histological examination of liver specimens showed that CCl4 caused variable pathological changes with elevated liver enzymes. Injection of BM-MSCs revealed an improvement in the histological picture of the liver and its enzymatic profile. On the other hand, most of the pathological lesion were still detected in rats of recovery group.Conclusions:BM-MSC could restore the liver structure and function in experimental model of liver fibrosis.

BackgroundAlkali-burned corneas can seldom heal properly to restore corneal transparency. Treatment of this severe disorder of the ocular surface remains a challenge.Aim of the Workwas to investigate whether systemically transplanted bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells (BM-MSCs) can promote corneal wound healing after alkali burn.Material and MethodsThirty five male New Zealand rabbits were used in this study. The animals were divided into three groups. Group I; the control group was sham operated. Group II; corneal alkali burn was created. Group III; underwent corneal alkali burn then treated with BM-MSCs. All corneas were collected after fourteen and twenty eight days. Evaluation using H&E, PAS & alkaline phosphatase reaction was carried out. Immune histo-chemical staining for CD44 and vimentin was performed as well.Resultsthe corneal epithelium of (Group II) showed marked alterations. Vascularization, cellular infiltration and irregularity of the collagen fibers were also seen in the substantia propria. Increase in the thickness of the Descemet’s membrane was noticed as well. On the other hand, at the time of 28 days, Group III rabbits showed best histological results with nearly healed corneas compared to other groups. Meanwhile, vimentin was more strongly expressed in Group III assessing the differentiating ability of BM-MSCs.ConclusionBM-MSCs could effectively promote corneal alkali burn healing.

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Mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) are described as multipotent cells because of their ability to differentiate into a variety of different cells and tissue lineages. AimThe aim of this study was to characterize bone marrow-mesenchymal stem cells (BM-MSCs) from male albino rats and examine their ability to differentiate into osteogenic and chondrogenic lineages. Materials and methodsBone marrow cells were cultured using complete medium. When the primary culture became nearly confluent, the adherent cells were prepared for Giemsa staining, immunostaining for CD44, CD29, and CD34, and transmission electron microscopy examination. To examine the differentiation potential of BM-MSCs, two cell pellets were prepared. One pellet was incubated in osteogenic-conditioned medium and the other pellet was incubated in chondrogenic-conditioned medium. ResultsNine days from primary culture, the adherent cells were seen as a dense homogenous population of fibroblast-like cells. The immunostaining of MSCs revealed a positive reaction for CD44 and CD29 and a negative reaction for CD34. Ultrastructural examination revealed that the MSCs had many pseudopodia and eccentric and euchromatic nuclei. Their cytoplasm was rich in free ribosomes, mitochondria, and rough endoplasmic reticulum. Examination of BM-MSCs in osteogenicconditioned medium showed calcium deposition with Alizarin red staining, whereas in chondrogenic medium these cells showed positive immunoreaction for type II collagen and bluish cytoplasmic reaction for chondroitin sulfate with Alcian blue staining. ConclusionMSCs were characterized by their morphology and CD44 and CD29 surface markers. They also had the capacity to differentiate into osteogenic and chondrogenic lineages.

Introduction Aging is a normal physiological process that affects all organs in the body including the cerebellum. Metformin is an anti-diabetic drug that is used in some age-related diseases. Regenerative medicine using adipose tissue derived mesenchymal stem cells (ADMSCs) is an emerging promising strategy. Aim to compare between the role of ADMSCs and metformin on the age-related structural changes of the cerebellum in female albino rats. Materials and methods Fifty-five female rats of different ages (4, 12 and 24 months) were included in this study. They were divided into three groups according to their ages: Group I (Adult rats), Group II (Old rats) and Group III (Senile rats). Group II and Group III were subdivided into three subgroups, Subgroup a: rats were left without treatment, Subgroup b: rats were given a single dose of 1X106 ADMSCs via tail vein. Subgroup c: Rats received300 mg/kg metformin/day orally. Rats were sacrificed after four weeks. The cerebellum was collected and processed for H&E, Toluidine blue and immuno-histochemical reaction using glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP). Results Histological examination of the cerebellum of the subgroups IIa and IIIa revealed age-related structural changes in comparison to group I. Purkinje cells appeared distorted with irregular outline. Some Purkinje cells were seen shrunken while others appeared ballooned. Focal loss of Purkinje cells was also noticed. Granular layer contained small widely separated granule cells. GFAP reaction revealed an apparent decrease in number of astrocytes and their processes. The structural changes were more obvious in subgroup IIIa. In ADMSCs treated subgroups (IIbandIIIb); more noticeable improvement of these changes was noticed compared to the corresponding metformin treated subgroups (IIc and IIIc). Conclusion ADMSCs was more effective than metformin in preventing some age-related structural changes of the cerebellum.