Abstract
Cell therapy with mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) can improve tissue healing. It is possible, however, that priming MSCs prior to implantation can further enhance their therapeutic benefit. This study was then performed to test whether priming MSCs to be more anti-inflammatory would enhance healing in a rat ligament model, i.e. a medial collateral ligament (MCL). MSCs were primed for 48 h using polyinosinic acid and polycytidylic acid (Poly (I:C)) at a concentration of 1 μg/ml. Rat MCLs were surgically transected and administered 1 × 106 cells in a carrier solution at the time of injury. A series of healing metrics were analyzed at days 4 and 14 post-injury in the ligaments that received primed MSCs, unprimed MSCs, or no cells (controls). Applying primed MSCs beneficially altered healing by affecting endothelialization, type 2 macrophage presence, apoptosis, procollagen 1α, and IL-1Ra levels. When analyzing MSC localization, both primed and unprimed MSCs co-localized with endothelial cells and pericytes suggesting a supportive role in angiogenesis. Priming MSCs prior to implantation altered key ligament healing events, resulted in a more anti-inflammatory environment, and improved healing.
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Acknowledgments
The authors acknowledge Joshua A. Choe and Blake H. Murray for quantifying immunohistochemistry images. Research reported in this publication was supported by the National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases of the National Institutes of Health under award number AR059916. The content is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily represent the official views of the National Institutes of Health.
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Saether, E.E., Chamberlain, C.S., Aktas, E. et al. Primed Mesenchymal Stem Cells Alter and Improve Rat Medial Collateral Ligament Healing. Stem Cell Rev and Rep 12, 42–53 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12015-015-9633-5
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12015-015-9633-5