title: Characterization of urine-derived cells from upper urinary tract in patients with bladder cancer.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To investigate whether cells isolated from the upper urinary tract (UTCs) possess stem cell characteristics and could be an alternative cell source for patients with bladder cancer. Current tissue engineering approaches for urologic tissue regeneration require invasive tissue biopsies to obtain autologous cells, and these procedures are associated with potential complications, such as donor site morbidity. Recently, cells isolated from voided urine (VUCs) have been proposed as an alternative cell source for urologic tissue engineering. However, VUCs should not be used in patients with bladder cancer, because the voided urine sample could contain malignant cells.
  
  
  METHODS
  Urine samples were collected from the upper urinary tract of 4 male patients with bladder cancer using a ureteral catheter. The samples were centrifuged and the pellets plated for primary culture. The cells were analyzed for colony-forming unit, proliferation rate, cytogenetics, stem cell characterization, and tumorigenicity. The results were compared with those of VUCs collected from 3 healthy men.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The UTCs were able to form colonies, had a greater proliferation rate than the VUCs, and had a normal karyotype without any chromosomal aberrations. The UTCs possessed stem cell characteristics (expression of CD44+, CD73+, CD90+, CD105+, SSEA4+) and expressed several markers for urothelial, smooth muscle, and endothelial cell lineages. The UTCs did not form teratoma when implanted into the subcapsular space of a mouse kidney.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The UTCs possessed stem cell characteristics and can potentially be an alternative cell source for urologic tissue regeneration in patients with bladder cancer.
authors.affiliation: Joint Institute for Regenerative Medicine, Kyungpook National University Hospital, Daegu, Korea.
authors.forename: So Young
authors.initials: SY
authors.lastname: Chun
authors.forename: Hyun Tae
authors.initials: HT
authors.lastname: Kim
authors.forename: Ji-Seon
authors.initials: JS
authors.lastname: Lee
authors.forename: Min Jeong
authors.initials: MJ
authors.lastname: Kim
authors.forename: Bum Soo
authors.initials: BS
authors.lastname: Kim
authors.forename: Bup Wan
authors.initials: BW
authors.lastname: Kim
authors.forename: Tae Gyun
authors.initials: TG
authors.lastname: Kwon
mesh_terms: D015720:5'-Nucleotidase / Q000378:metabolism; D000818:Animals; D015703:Antigens, CD / Q000378:metabolism; D049109:Cell Proliferation; D000071063:Endoglin; D006801:Humans; D018960:Hyaluronan Receptors / Q000378:metabolism; D059785:Karyotype; D008297:Male; D051379:Mice; D008875:Middle Aged; D011956:Receptors, Cell Surface / Q000378:metabolism; D055746:Stage-Specific Embryonic Antigens / Q000378:metabolism; D033581:Stem Cell Transplantation; D013234:Stem Cells / Q000166:cytology* / Q000378:metabolism / Q000473:pathology; D018800:Thy-1 Antigens / Q000378:metabolism; D023822:Tissue Engineering; D001749:Urinary Bladder Neoplasms / Q000652:urine*; D014551:Urinary Tract / Q000166:cytology*; D014556:Urine / Q000166:cytology
chemical_list: D015703:Antigens, CD; C064206:ENG protein, human; D000071063:Endoglin; D018960:Hyaluronan Receptors; D011956:Receptors, Cell Surface; D055746:Stage-Specific Embryonic Antigens; D018800:Thy-1 Antigens; C066584:stage-specific embryonic antigen-4; D015720:5'-Nucleotidase