Serum from liver injury rats induces differentiation of umbilical cord mesenchymal stem cells into hepatocyte-like cells

Zhong Yan; Tang Xiao-peng

doi:10.3969/j.issn.2095-4344.2015.23.007

Abstract：BACKGROUND:Umbilical cord mesenchymal stem cels are from the umbilical cord of newly born individuals and have no ethical issues, and therefore are promising candidates for seeded cels as a substitute for cel transplantation and regenerative medicine. OBJECTIVE:To investigate the effects of serum from liver injury rats on induced differentiation of human umbilical cord mesenchymal stem cels into hepatocyte-like cels and provide experimental evidence for use of human umbilical cord mesenchymal stem cels in the treatment of patients with end-stage liver disease in the clinic. METHODS: Rat models of acute liver injury were established by intraperitoneal injection of 10% carbon tetrachloride. Rats in the control group were intraperitonealy administered the same amount of soybean oil. Forty-eight hours after modeling, abdominal aorta blood was taken for serum preparation. Passage 3 human umbilical cord mesenchymal stem cels were cultured with 20% serum from liver injury rats and 20% fetal bovine serum. Morphology of human umbilical cord mesenchymal stem cels was observed before and after culture. Levels ofα-fetoprotein and albumin in the supernatant were detected. RESULTS AND CONCLUSION:Cels exhibited shuttle-shaped appearance and grew in whirlpool-like manner at 1 day after culture with serum from liver injury rats, exhibited short shuttle-shaped appearance at 2 days, were oval-shaped at 3 days, and were round and an extremely smal number of cels were floated at 4 days. At 4 days after culture with serum from liver injury rats, level of albumin in the cel supernatant was significantly increased than that before induction and that in the control group (P< 0.001), and there was no significant difference in level of α-fetoprotein in the cel supernatant. These results suggest that serum of liver injury rats can induce differentiation of umbilical cord mesenchymal stem cels into hepatocyte-like cels.