A Comparison Between the Chondrogenic Potential of Human Bone Marrow Stem Cells (BMSCs) and Adipose-Derived Stem Cells (ADSCs) Taken from the Same Donors

Abstract

Cartilage damage has been documented as one of the major problems leading to knee repair procedures worldwide. The low availability of cartilage that can be harvested without causing a negative health impact has led to the focus on the potential of stem cells, which have been transplanted into damaged areas and successfully grown into new healthy tissue. This study aims to compare the chondrogenic potential of two stem cell sources--adipose tissue and bone marrow. Stem cells were isolated from donor-matched adipose tissue and bone marrow, following established protocols. The cells were grown in a chondrogenic cocktail containing transforming growth factor-beta3 (TGF-beta3) up till 28 days, and assessed for expression changes of cartilage markers at the gene and protein level, using qualitative and quantitative methods. Controls were included for every time point. Real-time polymerase chain reaction (PCR) results showed increases in the gene expression of collagen II in both the cell types that received TGF-beta3 treatment. However, histological, immunohistochemical, and glycosaminoglycan (GAG) assay clearly showed that collagen II and proteoglycans (PG) were synthesized only in the growth factor-treated bone marrow stem cells (BMSCs). These findings support the results obtained in our in vivo comparative study done on an animal model, suggesting that BMSCs are more suitable than adipose-derived stem cells (ADSCs) for chondrogenesis.

In vitro cardiomyogenic differentiation of adipose‐derived stromal cells using transforming growth factor‐β1

“…21,28 ADSC multipotency has been demonstrated in their ability to differentiate into various lineages including adipocytes, osteoblasts, chondrocytes, and endothelial cells. 15,27,[31][32][33] Contracting cells with CMC features were seen during adipose stromal cell culture due to spontaneous differentiation, but the frequency was very low (0.02-0.07%). 7 The present study demonstrates that TGF-b1 promotes ADSC cardiomyogenic differentiation in vitro.…”

Chondrogenic differentiation of adipose tissue‐derived mesenchymal stem cells: Greater doses of growth factor are necessary

“…[11][12][13][14] One study that compared chondrogenesis in ATMSCs and BMMSCs from the same individual reported that after 2 weeks of pellet culture, the amount of GAG and the expression of type II collagen mRNA was 120% and 500-to 5000-fold higher in BMMSCs than in ATMSCs. 11 Sakaguchi et al 12 showed that human bone marrow-or synoviumderived stem cells had greater chondrogenic and osteogenic potential than adipose tissue-derived stem cells.…”

Updates on stem cells and their applications in regenerative medicine

“…However, differentiation potentials might be different. Afizah et al (2007) found that under similar conditions in vitro chondrogenic differentiation is better in BMSCs than in ADSCs.…”