Stem cell isolation from human Wharton's jelly: a study of their differentiation ability into lens fiber cells

ABSTRACT

Recently, the use of stem cells has expanded into numerous areas including cell therapy. In this study, we investigated the differentiation capacity of human Wharton's jelly stem cells [hWJSCs] into lens fiber cells. Morphological changes and expressions of four crystallin genes [Alpha A, Alpha B, Beta B1 and Beta B3] were studied. The bovine vitreous body has been shown to induce expression of crystallin genes in hWJSCs. By using the vitreous as a lens fiber cell inducer, we showed that Alpha B-, Beta B1- and Beta B3-crystallin genes expressed in hWJSCs