Amniotic Fluid-Derived Stem Cells Demonstrated Cardiogenic Potential in Indirect Co-culture with Human Cardiac Cells

Abstract

Amniotic fluid-derived stem cells (AFSC) have been shown to be broadly multipotent and non-tumorogenic. Previous studies of direct mixing of AFSC and neonatal rat ventricle myocytes indicated evidence of AFSC cardiogenesis. In this study, we examined human AFSC cardiogenic potential in indirect co-culture with human cardiac cells in conditions that eliminated the possibility of cell fusion. Human AFSC in contact with human cardiac cells showed expression of cardiac troponin T (cTnT) in immunohistochemistry, and no evidence of cell fusion were found through fluorescent in situ hybridization. When indirectly co-cultured with cardiac cells, human AFSC in contact with cardiac cells across a thin porous membrane showed a statistically significant increase in cTnT expression compared to non-contact conditions but lacked upregulation of calcium modulating proteins and did not have functional or morphological characteristics of mature cardiomyocytes. This suggests that contact is a necessary but not sufficient condition for AFSC cardiac differentiation in co-culture with cardiac cells.

Fullerene mediates proliferation and cardiomyogenic differentiation of adipose-derived stem cells via modulation of MAPK pathway and cardiac protein expression

“…However, the gene expression was at odds with that of the protein levels at similar time points, consistent with the results of Gao et al, 44 who found that the cTnT protein expression was upregulated between test groups and controls, without any significant differences in mRNA expression.…”

Cardiac Restoration Stemming From the Placenta Tree: Insights From Fetal and Perinatal Cell Biology

“…Nevertheless, while amniotic fluid stem cells can easily adopt a smooth muscle and/or endothelial fate both in vitro and in vivo (Sartore et al, 2005 ; Iop et al, 2008 ; Bollini et al, 2011a ; Ghionzoli et al, 2013 ; Schiavo et al, 2015 ; Tancharoen et al, 2017 ), a general consensus on their cardiomyogenic potential has not been reached yet. AF-MSC and hAFSC have shown to acquire cardiomyocyte-like phenotype following specific in vitro treatment (i.e., via direct co-culture with rodent neonatal cardiomyocytes or chemical induction by 5-aza-2′-deoxycytidine, with or without the addition of transforming growth factor beta-1, or by a mixture of hyaluronic, butyric and retinoic acids, up to modulation of Wnt signaling by small molecules), with evidence including immature expression of sarcomeric proteins, like cardiac troponins, along with up-regulation of early cardiac transcription factors, such as Nkx-2.5, Islet-1 and Gata-4 (Chiavegato et al, 2007 ; Bollini et al, 2011a ; Guan et al, 2011 ; Maioli et al, 2013 ; Gao et al, 2014 ; Connell et al, 2015 ; Jiang and Zhang, 2017 ). However, in most cases, no organized sarcomeres were detected in the differentiated cells (Connell et al, 2015 ), with limited spontaneous contraction or functional maturation of their phenotype (Bollini et al, 2011a ).…”

Protective effect of GDNF‐engineered amniotic fluid‐derived stem cells on the renal ischaemia reperfusion injury in vitro

“…Amniotic fluid-derived stem cells (AFSCs) between adult stem cells and ESCs, characterized by expression of the surface antigen c-kit (CD117), 6 are able to give rise to lineages representing the 3 germ layers, such as osteoblasts, myocytes, cardiomyocy, chondrocytes and adipocytes. [7][8][9][10][11] AFSCs have been considered as one of the most likely sources of endogenous tissue repair in the light of self-renewal ability, high proliferative potential, lack of immunogenicity, low risk of tumorigenicity, safety considerations and absence of ethical concerns. 12,13 Their efficacy in the repair of kidney injury has been described in several studies.…”