Fast-proliferating adipose tissue mesenchymal-stromal-like cells for therapy.

Human mesenchymal stromal cells, whether from the bone marrow or adipose tissue (hASCs), are promising cell therapy agents. However, generation of abundant cells for therapy remains to be a challenge, due to the need of lengthy expansion and the risk of accumulating genomic defects during the process. We show that hASCs can be easily induced to a reversible fast-proliferating phenotype (FP-ASCs) that allows rapid generation of a clinically useful quantity of cells in <2 weeks of culture. Expanded FP-ASCs retain their finite expansion capacity and pluripotent properties. Despite the high proliferation rate, FP-ASCs show genomic stability by array-comparative genomic hybridization, and did not generate tumors when implanted for a long time in an SCID mouse model. Comparative analysis of gene expression patterns revealed a set of genes that can be used to characterize FP-ASCs and distinguish them from hASCs. As potential candidate therapeutic agents, FP-ASCs displayed high vasculogenic capacity in Matrigel assays. Moreover, application of hASCs and FP-ASCs in a fibrin scaffold over a myocardium infarct model in SCID mice showed that both cell types can differentiate to endothelial and myocardium lineages, although FP-ASCs were more potent angiogenesis inducers than hASCs, at promoting myocardium revascularization.

Glioblastoma therapy with cytotoxic mesenchymal stromal cells optimized by bioluminescence imaging of tumor and therapeutic cell response.

Genetically modified adipose tissue derived mesenchymal stromal cells (hAMSCs) with tumor homing capacity have been proposed for localized therapy of chemo- and radiotherapy resistant glioblastomas. We demonstrate an effective procedure to optimize glioblastoma therapy based on the use of genetically modified hAMSCs and in vivo non invasive monitoring of tumor and therapeutic cells. Glioblastoma U87 cells expressing Photinus pyralis luciferase (Pluc) were implanted in combination with hAMSCs expressing a trifunctional Renilla reniformis luciferase-red fluorescent protein-thymidine kinase reporter in the brains of SCID mice that were subsequently treated with ganciclovir (GCV). The resulting optimized therapy was effective and monitoring of tumor cells by bioluminescence imaging (BLI) showed that after 49 days GCV treatment reduced significantly the hAMSC treated tumors; by a factor of 10(4) relative to controls. Using a Pluc reporter regulated by an endothelial specific promoter and in vivo BLI to image hAMSC differentiation we gained insight on the therapeutic mechanism. Implanted hAMSCs homed to tumor vessels, where they differentiated to endothelial cells. We propose that the tumor killing efficiency of genetically modified hAMSCs results from their association with the tumor vascular system and should be useful vehicles to deliver localized therapy to glioblastoma surgical borders following tumor resection.