Comparison of the proliferation, migration and angiogenic properties of human amniotic epithelial and mesenchymal stem cells and their effects on endothelial cells

Abstract

In vivo studies have shown that amnion-produced growth factors participate in many diseases that involve angiogenesis, re-epithelialization and immunomodulation. Although human amniotic epithelial cells (hAECs) and human amniotic mesenchymal stem cells (hAMSCs) can be obtained from amniotic membranes, there is little information regarding their biological differences. The aim of the present study was to isolate and characterize cells from human amnions, to investigate the biological potential and behavior of these cells on the function of endothelial cells in vivo and in vitro and to examine variations in the expression profile of growth factors in different human amnion-derived cell types. Amnion fragments were enzymatically digested into two cell fractions, which were analyzed by mesenchymal and epithelial cell markers. Human aortic endothelial cells (hAoECs) were cultured with conditioned medium (CdM) collected from hAECs or hAMSCs. We used scratch and Transwell assays to evaluate migration ability; Cell Counting Kit-8 (CCK-8) and cell cycle analysis to evaluate proliferation ability; and a Matrigel tube formation assay to evaluate angiogenesis ability. To detect expression of angiogenesis-related genes, qPCR and enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) analyses were conducted. As stem cells, hAECs and hAMSCs all expressed the stem cell markers SSEA-4, OCT-4 and SOX-2. CdM obtained from hAECs promoted cell migration; CdM obtained from hAMSCs promoted cell proliferation; CdM obtained from hAECs and hAMSCs both promoted angiogenesis in hAoECs. Amnion-derived cells secreted significant amounts of angiogenic factors including HGF, IGF-1, VEGF, EGF, HB-EGF and bFGF, although differences in the cellular expression profile of these soluble factors were observed. Our results highlight that human amniotic epithelial and mesenchymal stem cells, which showed differences in their soluble factor secretion and angiogenic functions, could be ideal cell sources for regenerative medicine.

Shielding islets with human amniotic epithelial cells enhances islet engraftment and revascularization in a murine diabetes model

“…One of the main causes of islet death following transplant is the lack of oxygenation and nutrient supply due to disruption of the islet intrinsic microvasculature and slow revascularization in the recipient. hAECs have been shown to promote vessel formation in vitro and angiogenesis in vivo, in correlation with the expression of numerous angiogenic factors directly involved in the revascularization process, such as vascular endothelial growth factor‐A (VEGF‐A), platelet‐derived growth factor subunit B (PDGF‐B), and angiopoietin‐1 (ANGPT1) . Among these factors, the VEGF family is known to stimulate the migration of endothelial cells and improve vascular permeability .…”

Copper-containing mesoporous bioactive glass promotes angiogenesis in an in vivo zebrafish model

“…The wound-healing assay is currently used in specialized literature [61][62][63] and is chosen because performed in short times (4 and 7 hours), gap occupation by cells is exclusively due to their migration and not to their proliferation, since there is not sufficient time going to complete a cell cycle. Migration assay showed that material extracts using both 100 and 300 mg L -1 concentrations were able to increase the migratory rate of BAEC, suggesting a proangiogenic effect.…”

Therapeutic efficiency of human amniotic epithelial stem cell-derived functional hepatocyte-like cells in mice with acute hepatic failure

“…It has been reported that the stem cells derived from term amnion possess multilineage differentiation potential [ 25 ], non-tumorigenicity [ 26 ], low immunogenic profile [ 27 ], and anti-inflammatory functions [ 28 ], reducing the risk of cell rejection and the potential of graft-versus-host disease. In addition, since hAESCs have similar pluripotent properties with embryonic stem cells, they are not associated with the ethical concerns [ 29 ]. Taken together, these observations suggest that the hAESCs might be ideal candidates for regenerative medicine and tissue repair.…”