Culture and Identification of Multipotent Stem Cells in Guinea Pig Sclera

Abstract

Background: to investigate whether the sclera of guinea pig contains stem cells with multiple differentiation potentials.Methods: Scleral tissue from guinea pig was separated from the retina and choroid and digested to release single cells. The cells cultured was identified as stem cells by flow cytometric analysis, semiquantitative RT-PCR. Abilities for multipotent differentiation were analyzed by histochemical staining technique (oil-red-O staining, alcian blue staining and alizarin red staining). Results: The cultured scleral stem cells were positive for CD44 and CD105 (mesenchymal stem cell surface markers) by flow cytometry. The cells cultured expressed stem cell markers ABCG2, Notch1, Six2 and Pax6, and the most important component of sclera type I collagen. The positive staining informed that the cells cultured were able to differentiate to adipogenic, chondrogenic, and osteogenic lineages.Conclusion: The guinea pig sclera contained stem cells with multiple differentiation potentials. The cells were also related to scleral collagen and cartilage related proteins. The finding may provide a new tool to help clarify mechanisms of sclera related disease in further studies.