Objective: To explore mechanism of human marrow mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) in treating patients with aplastic anemia(AA).

Methods:

  1. MSCs in patients with aplastic anemia(AA) and the control group were separated with Percoll(1.073g/m L) and cultured in low glucose DMEM. Then, observed their morphologies,checked their molecule surface antigen by flow cytometry and examined the process of adipogenic differention.

  2. The mononuclear cells (MNC)of marrow in patients with AA were enriched based 1.077g/L density centrifuge and cultured in the 1640 medium.

  3. (1)MSC in control group and MNC in AA group were co-cultured with or without cytokines. The function of supporting hematopoiesis for MSC was to be observed in single confluence layer after plating by counting the total cells and the clones in every well every week. Then analyzed the dynamics of proliferation.

  4. T cells were harvested by using nylon column. MSC in control group and T cells in AA group were co-cultured. The proliferation of T cell was measured by MTT method. The CD25,CD69,CD4,CD8,Annexin-V expression rates of CD3+T cells were analyzed by flow cytometry .The gene and protein of IL-2, IL-4,IL-10,TNF-α,IFN-γ,TGF-β1 were examined by RT-PCR and ELISA respectively.

  5. MSC treated to the model of AA, by the examination of peripheral hemogram, bone marrow biopsy, pathological section of spleen.

Results:

  1. There was no significant difference between control group MSC and AA-MSC in morphologies but adipogenic differentiation in AA patients is earlier than controls.

  2. The clones of CFU-GM in group(MSC)(78.46±3.58)/2×105 cells, after 14 days cultured was significantly higher than(9.21±4.32)/2×105 cells in group(CK + DMEM medium), while lower than (99.32±4.34)/2×105 cells in group(MSC+CK).

  3. (1)the Treg cells (TCD4+CD25+) in AA group (2.01±1.21)/ 2×105 was significantly lower than (4.43±1.67)/2×105 cells in control group, while(5.43±2.31) / 2×105 in group (MSC+AAT) was no more than (4.43±1.67)/2×105 cells in control group. (2) MSCs significantly inhibited T cell proliferation (P< 0. O5)by MTT. (3) RT-PCR and ELISA analysis showed that MSCs induced the expression of IL-4, IL-10, TGF-β1 and decreased significantly the expression of IL-2, TNF-α, IFN -γ in T cells of AA.

  4. the model of AA treated by MSCs showed improvements in 3 blood components greatly(p<0.05), Bone marrow proliferated and restored to the normal level, hematopoietic cell increased obviously (hematopoietic cell capacity was more than 40%), and atrophied spleen restore to normality.

Conclusions:

  1. morphologies of AA’MSC had no evident different with the control but was more easy adipogenic differention.

  2. aplastic anemia belongs to autoimmune diseases in which T cells effect organ-specific destruction.

  3. The fundamental mechanism of MSC in treating AA should be potential to promote hematopoietic cell proliferation by adjusting immunity.

Author notes

Disclosure: No relevant conflicts of interest to declare.

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