Human platelet-rich plasma as a biological stimulant for proliferation and differentiation of mesenchymal stem cells

Abstract

Platelet is one of the cells within the blood that have potential in regenerative therapy. Recently platelet-related products got special attention due to the abundance of growth factors and easy availability and processing. With the robust in cell-based therapy, platelet-rich plasma (PRP) has been intensively studied for its potential to substitute the fetal bovine serum (FBS) as the supplement in cell culture. Our study aimed to investigate the use of human PRP in mesenchymal stem cells (MSC) culture and its related effect on stem cell biology. We searched in vitro studies that used human PRP as a supplementing factor on human MSCs culture. From the initial 172 studies, 14 studies fulfilled the selection criteria and were analysed. The results showed that the sources of MSCs were varied, including adipose tissue, bone marrow, and dental tissue. The PRP concentration showing the best effects was ranged from 10 to 20%. In addition, most of the studies demonstrated the superiority of PRP to FBS in promoting the proliferation and differentiation of MSCs in vitro. Therefore, PRP could be an alternative to FBS in supporting a xeno-free culture system. Studies are needed to reveal the mechanism of PRP in maintaining the physiology of MSCs.