ABSTRACT
BACKGROUND: Human placental mesenchymal stem cells can improve the blood glucose level of diabetes mellitus rats and gestational diabetes rats, but little is reported on its effect on glucagon, adiponectin, and tumor necrosis factor-α in the serum and placental tissues. OBJECTIVE: To investigate the effects of human placental mesenchymal stem cells on the levels of glucagon, adiponectin and tumor necrosis factor-α in the serum and placental tissues in gestational diabetes rats. METHODS: A rat model of gestational diabetes was made by high-fat and high-sugar diet plus low-dose injection of streptozotocin. Passage 3 human placental mesenchymal stem cell suspension (1×1010 cells/L, 0.5 mL) was injected into gestational diabetes rats at gestational days 4 and 11 (4- and 11-day intervention groups). Meanwhile, control rats were given the same amount of normal saline. At 20 days of gestation, blood samples from the abdominal aorta were extracted, and then cesarean section was made to remove the placenta in the gestational diabetes rats. ELISA and real-time PCR were used to detect the levels of glucagon, adiponectin and tumor necrosis factor-α in the serum and placental tissues, respectively. RESULTS AND CONCLUSION: (1) The serum and placental levels of glucagon, adiponectin and tumor necrosis factor-α showed no differences between the 4- and 11-day intervention groups (P > 0.05). (2) Compared with the control group, significantly increased serum adiponectin level and significantly decreased placental glucagon mRNA expression were found in the 4-day intervention group (P < 0.05). (3) Compared with the control group, the serum adiponectin level and the placental glucagon level both had a significant decrease in the 11-day intervention group (P < 0.01), while the serum level of tumor necrosis factor-α was significantly decreased (P < 0.01). To conclude, transplantation of human placental mesenchymal stem cells can vary the adiponectin and glucagon levels, which provides a new research idea and basis for the further study on the possible mechanism of placental mesenchymal stem cells to improve blood glucose level in gestational diabetes rats. Additionally, it is worthy while to notice that gestational diabetes rats given placental mesenchymal stem cells in the early or late pregnancy show no effects on the above indicators.