title: Low molecular weight dextran sulfate binds to human myoblasts and improves their survival after transplantation in mice.
abstract: Myoblast transplantation represents a promising therapeutic strategy in the treatment of several genetic muscular disorders including Duchenne muscular dystrophy. Nevertheless, such an approach is impaired by the rapid death, limited migration, and rejection of transplanted myoblasts by the host. Low molecular weight dextran sulfate (DXS), a sulfated polysaccharide, has been reported to act as a cytoprotectant for various cell types. Therefore, we investigated whether DXS could act as a "myoblastprotectant" either in vitro or in vivo after transplantation in immunodeficient mice. In vitro, DXS bound human myoblasts in a dose-dependent manner and significantly inhibited staurosporine-mediated apoptosis and necrosis. DXS pretreatment also protected human myoblasts from natural killer cell-mediated cytotoxicity. When human myoblasts engineered to express the renilla luciferase transgene were transplanted in immunodeficient mice, bioluminescence imaging analysis revealed that the proportion of surviving myoblasts 1 and 3 days after transplantation was two times higher when cells were preincubated with DXS compared to control (77.9 ± 10.1% vs. 39.4 ± 4.9%, p = 0.0009 and 38.1 ± 8.5% vs. 15.1 ± 3.4%, p = 0.01, respectively). Taken together, we provide evidence that DXS acts as a myoblast protectant in vitro and is able in vivo to prevent the early death of transplanted myoblasts.
authors.affiliation: Orthopaedic Surgery Service, Geneva University Hospitals and Faculty of Medicine, Geneva, Switzerland. thomas.laumonier@unige.ch
authors.forename: Thomas
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Laumonier
authors.forename: Amandine
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Pradier
authors.forename: Pierre
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Hoffmeyer
authors.forename: Vincent
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Kindler
authors.forename: Jacques
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Menetrey
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D017209:Apoptosis / Q000187:drug effects*; D002454:Cell Differentiation / Q000187:drug effects; D049109:Cell Proliferation / Q000187:drug effects; D002675:Child, Preschool; D016264:Dextran Sulfate / Q000737:chemistry / Q000494:pharmacology*; D005260:Female; D006085:Graft Survival / Q000276:immunology; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D007694:Killer Cells, Natural / Q000276:immunology; D008163:Luminescent Measurements; D051379:Mice; D016688:Mice, Inbred NOD; D008970:Molecular Weight; D032446:Myoblasts / Q000166:cytology / Q000637:transplantation*; D009336:Necrosis; D019311:Staurosporine / Q000633:toxicity; D014183:Transplantation, Heterologous
chemical_list: D016264:Dextran Sulfate; D019311:Staurosporine