Stem cell sheet fabrication from human umbilical cord mesenchymal stem cell and Col-T scaffold.

Today, stem cell therapy has been shown to be a remarkable progress and an important application in the regeneration of defective tissues and organs. To deliver stem cells to the injured area, several methods have been proposed such as an intravenous infusion, direct damaged tissue injection, or stem cell sheet transplantation. In this study, we aimed to fabricate a stem cell sheet by culturing human umbilical cord mesenchymal stem cells (hUC-MSCs) on a Col-T scaffold to recover the structure and function of damaged tissues. The results showed that cells reach confluent on the scaffold surface 18 h after seeding. These stem cells were able to survive and proliferate on Col-T scaffold. The average tensile strength of the stem cell sheet was 2.65 MPa. The sheet reached the sterile standards when tested for total bacteria, Candida albicans, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, and Staphylococcus aureus according to Circular number 06/2011/TT-BYT of Vietnam Ministry of Health. In addition, the stem cell sheet was non-toxic when evaluated for exposure toxicity and fluid toxicity according to iSO-10993. Importantly, 5 days after culturing on the Col-T scaffold, the seeded hUC-MSCs were still possessed all properties of MSC such as spindle-shaped, adhesive, could differentiate into mesoderm-derived cells, showed to be CD90, CD105, CD73 positive and CD45, CD34, CD11b, CD19, HLA-DR negative. In summary, our study was successful in creating a stem cell sheet from hUC-MSCs and Col-T scaffold for subsequent in vivo transplantation in the future.

Risk Factors for Stroke Associated Pneumonia.

BACKGROUND: Stroke patients are at high risk for stroke-associated pneumonia (SAP). If patients suffer from pneumonia their prognosis will worsen. AIM: To identify factors that increases the risk of SAP in stroke patients. METHODS: A group of 508 patients hospitalized within 5 days after the onset of stroke were enrolled prospectively. RESULTS: The incidence of SAP was 13.4%. Some major risk factors for SAP are: mechanical ventilation (MV) had odds ratio (OR) 16.4 (p <0.01); the National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale (NIHSS) > 15 OR 9.1 (p <0.01); the Gugging Swallowing Screen (GUSS) 0-14 OR 11.7 (p <0.01). CONCLUSION: SAP is a frequent complication. We identified some risk factors of SAP, especially stroke severity (NIHSS > 15), swallowing disorder (GUSS < 15) and mechanical ventilation.