Telomere attrition occurs during ex vivo expansion of human dental pulp stem cells.
We provide a detailed characteristic of stem cells isolated and expanded from the human dental pulp. Dental pulp stem cells express mesenchymal cell markers STRO-1, vimentin, CD29, CD44, CD73, CD90, CD166, and stem cell markers Sox2, nestin, and nucleostemin. They are multipotent as shown by their osteogenic and chondrogenic potential. We measured relative telomere length in 11 dental pulp stem cell lines at different passages by quantitative real-time PCR. Despite their large proliferative capacity, stable viability, phenotype, and genotype over prolonged cultivation, human dental pulp stem cells suffer from progressive telomere shortening over time they replicate in vitro. Relative telomere length (T/S) was inversely correlated with cumulative doubling time. Our findings indicate that excessive ex vivo expansion of adult stem cells should be reduced at minimum to avoid detrimental effects on telomere maintenance and measurement of telomere length should become a standard when certificating the status and replicative age of stem cells prior therapeutic applications.
Department of Histology and Embryology, Faculty of Medicine in Hradec Kralove, Charles University in Prague, Simkova 870, 50038 Hradec Kralove, Czech Republic. mokry@lfhk.cuni.cz
Jaroslav
J
Mokry
Tomas
T
Soukup
Stanislav
S
Micuda
Jana
J
Karbanova
Benjamin
B
Visek
Eva
E
Brcakova
Jakub
J
Suchanek
Jan
J
Bouchal
Doris
D
Vokurkova
Romana
R
Ivancakova
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D015703:Antigens, CD / Q000378:metabolism; D002452:Cell Count; D049109:Cell Proliferation; D002478:Cells, Cultured; D020219:Chondrogenesis; D003114:Colony-Forming Units Assay; D004247:DNA; D003782:Dental Pulp / Q000166:cytology*; D005260:Female; D005434:Flow Cytometry; D006801:Humans; D007150:Immunohistochemistry; D007700:Kinetics; D008297:Male; D008858:Microscopy, Phase-Contrast; D039902:Multipotent Stem Cells / Q000166:cytology / Q000378:metabolism; D010012:Osteogenesis; D012015:Reference Standards; D013234:Stem Cells / Q000166:cytology* / Q000378:metabolism; D016615:Telomere / Q000473:pathology*; D013997:Time Factors; D055815:Young Adult
D015703:Antigens, CD; D004247:DNA