Human White Adipose Tissue Vasculature Contains Endothelial Colony-Forming Cells with Robust In Vivo Vasculogenic Potential The authors aimed to determine whether endothelial colony-forming cells (ECFCs) reside in the vasculature of human white adipose tissue (WAT) and to evaluate if WAT-derived ECFCs have equal clinical potential to blood-derived ECFCs. They extensively compared WAT-derived endothelial cell phenotype and functionality to bonafide ECFCs derived from both umbilical cord blood and adult peripheral blood. [Angiogenesis] Abstract Formation of Functional Gap Junctions in Amniotic Fluid-Derived Stem Cells Induced by Transmembrane Co-Culture with Neonatal Rat Cardiomyocytes Researchers investigated whether or not culture of amniotic fluid-derived stem cells on the opposite side of a Transwell membrane from neonatal rat ventricular myocytes, allowing for contact and communication without confounding factors such as cell fusion, could direct cardiac differentiation and enhance gap junction formation. [J Cell Mol Med] Abstract | Full Article | Press Release Suppression of Cholangiocarcinoma Cell Growth by Human Umbilical Cord Mesenchymal Stem Cells: A Possible Role of Wnt and Akt Signaling Investigators observed the effects of human mesenchymal stem cells on the human cholangiocarcinoma cell line, HCCC-9810, using an animal transplantation model, and conditioned media from human umbilical cord-derived mesenchymal stem cells. [PLoS One] Full Article Impaired Lipopolysaccharide Responsiveness of Cord Blood Mononuclear Cells and the Risk of Asthma: A Longitudinal Study Researchers previously demonstrated that the proliferative response to lipopolysaccharide (LPS) in cord blood mononuclear cells is negatively correlated to the induced expression of interleukein-4. They examined whether an impaired cellular response to LPS in infancy, is associated with the risk for asthma. [Pediatr Res] Abstract In Vitro Biological and Mechanical Evaluation of Various Scaffold Materials for Myocardial Tissue Engineering To identify the best scaffold for cardiac patch construction researchers compared polyurethane, Collagen Cell Carriers, ePTFE and ePTFE SSP1-RGD regarding their receptiveness to seeding with mesenchymal stem cells isolated from umbilical cord tissue. [J Biomed Mater Res A] Abstract Importance of Donor Ethnicity/Race Matching in Unrelated Adult and Cord Blood Allogeneic Hematopoietic Cell Transplantation Donor race matching (both recipients and donors belonging to the same race) might be a factor in outcomes of donor allogeneic hematopoietic cell transplantation (alloHCT). A total of 858 patients who underwent umbilical cord blood or unrelated donor alloHCT were studied. [Leuk Lymphoma] Abstract Comparative Characteristics of Endothelial-Like Cells Derived from Human Adipose Mesenchymal Stem Cells and Umbilical Cord Blood-Derived Endothelial Cells Scientists investigated the phenotype of cells obtained by culturing adipose-derived mesenchymal stem cells in the presence of endothelial growth supplements compared to endothelial cells obtained from umbilical cord blood. [Clin Exp Med] Abstract Vectofusin-1, a New Viral Entry Enhancer, Strongly Promotes Lentiviral Transduction of Human Hematopoietic Stem Cells Researchers described a new transduction enhancer called Vectofusin-1, which is a short cationic peptide, active on several lentiviral vector pseudotypes. Vectofusin-1 is used as a soluble additive to safely increase the frequency of transduced hematopoietic stem/progenitor cells and to augment the level of transduction to one or two copies of vector per cell in a vector dose-dependent manner. [Mol Ther Nucleic Acids] Full Article |