Skin-derived human adult stem cells surprisingly share many features with human pancreatic stem cells.
Multiple tissue niches in the human body are now recognised to harbour stem cells. Here, we have asked how different adult stem cell populations, isolated from two ontogenetically distinct human organs (skin, pancreas), actually are with respect to a panel of standard markers/characteristics. Here we show that an easily accessible adult human tissue such as skin may serve as a convenient source of adult stem cell-like populations that share markers with stem cells derived from an internal, exocrine organ. Surprisingly, both, human pancreas- and skin-derived stem/progenitor cells demonstrate differentiation patterns across lineage boundaries into cell types of ectoderm (e.g. PGP 9.5+ and GFAP+), mesoderm (e.g. alpha-SMA+) and entoderm (e.g. amylase+ and albumin+). This intriguing differentiation capability warrants systemic follow-up, since it raises the theoretical possibility that an adult human skin-derived progenitor cell population could be envisioned for possible application in cell replacement therapies.
Kajahn
Jennifer
J
Fraunhofer Institute of Biomedical Engineering, Group of Cell Differentiation and Cell Technology at the University of Luebeck, MFC Innovationscampus 1, Maria-Goeppert-Strasse 1, D-23538 Luebeck, Germany.
Gorjup
Erwin
E
Tiede
Stephan
S
von Briesen
Hagen
H
Paus
Ralf
R
Kruse
Charli
C
Danner
Sandra
S
D000943:Antigens, Differentiation / Q000378:metabolism; D002454:Cell Differentiation / Q000502:physiology; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008875:Middle Aged; D009928:Organ Specificity / Q000502:physiology; D010179:Pancreas / Q000166:cytology* / Q000378:metabolism; D012867:Skin / Q000166:cytology* / Q000378:metabolism; D033581:Stem Cell Transplantation; D013234:Stem Cells / Q000166:cytology* / Q000378:metabolism
D000943:Antigens, Differentiation