Immunosuppressive properties of mesenchymal stromal cells derived from amnion, placenta, <scp>W</scp>harton's jelly and umbilical cord

<jats:title>Abstract</jats:title><jats:sec><jats:title>Background</jats:title><jats:p>The role of bone marrow‐derived mesenchymal stromal cells (<jats:styled-content style="fixed-case">BM</jats:styled-content>‐<jats:styled-content style="fixed-case">MSC</jats:styled-content>) in preventing the incidence and ameliorating the severity of graft‐versus‐host disease (<jats:styled-content style="fixed-case">GvHD</jats:styled-content>) has recently been reported. However, as the collection of <jats:styled-content style="fixed-case">BM</jats:styled-content>‐<jats:styled-content style="fixed-case">MSC</jats:styled-content> is an invasive procedure, more accessible sources of <jats:styled-content style="fixed-case">MSC</jats:styled-content> are desirable.</jats:p></jats:sec><jats:sec><jats:title>Aim</jats:title><jats:p>This study aimed to explore the alternative sources of <jats:styled-content style="fixed-case">MSC</jats:styled-content> from amnion, placenta, Wharton's jelly and umbilical cord, which are usually discarded.</jats:p></jats:sec><jats:sec><jats:title>Methods</jats:title><jats:p><jats:styled-content style="fixed-case">MSC</jats:styled-content> from those tissues were isolated using mechanical dissociation and enzymatic digestion. Their capacity for proliferation and differentiation, and ability to suppress alloreactive <jats:styled-content style="fixed-case">T</jats:styled-content>‐lymphocytes were studied and compared with those of <jats:styled-content style="fixed-case">BM</jats:styled-content>‐<jats:styled-content style="fixed-case">MSC</jats:styled-content>.</jats:p></jats:sec><jats:sec><jats:title>Results</jats:title><jats:p><jats:styled-content style="fixed-case">MSC</jats:styled-content> derived from amnion, placenta, <jats:styled-content style="fixed-case">W</jats:styled-content>harton's jelly and umbilical cord were similar to <jats:styled-content style="fixed-case">BM</jats:styled-content>‐<jats:styled-content style="fixed-case">MSC</jats:styled-content> regarding the cell morphology, the immunophenotype as well as the differentiation ability. These <jats:styled-content style="fixed-case">MSC</jats:styled-content> also elicited a similar degree of immunosuppression, as evidenced by the inhibition of alloreactive <jats:styled-content style="fixed-case">T</jats:styled-content>‐lymphocytes in the mixed lymphocyte reaction, compared with that of <jats:styled-content style="fixed-case">BM</jats:styled-content>‐<jats:styled-content style="fixed-case">MSC</jats:styled-content>. <jats:styled-content style="fixed-case">MSC</jats:styled-content> from umbilical cord and <jats:styled-content style="fixed-case">W</jats:styled-content>harton's jelly had a higher proliferative capacity, whereas those from amnion and placenta had a lower proliferative capacity compared with <jats:styled-content style="fixed-case">BM</jats:styled-content>‐<jats:styled-content style="fixed-case">MSC</jats:styled-content>.</jats:p></jats:sec><jats:sec><jats:title>Conclusion</jats:title><jats:p>The results obtained from this study suggest that <jats:styled-content style="fixed-case">MSC</jats:styled-content> from amnion, placenta, <jats:styled-content style="fixed-case">W</jats:styled-content>harton's jelly and umbilical cord can therefore be potentially used for substituting <jats:styled-content style="fixed-case">BM</jats:styled-content>‐<jats:styled-content style="fixed-case">MSC</jats:styled-content> in several therapeutic applications, including the treatment of <jats:styled-content style="fixed-case">GvHD</jats:styled-content>.</jats:p></jats:sec>