Separation of Mesenchymal Stem Cells Through a Strategic Centrifugation Protocol.

Despite great promise surrounding mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs), their implementation for tissue engineering strategies remains in the development phases. Many of the concerns regarding the clinical use of MSCs originate from population heterogeneity, during both isolation and differentiation. In this study, we utilize our previously developed centrifugation cell adhesion protocol for the separation of MSCs.

Influence of 3D printed porous architecture on mesenchymal stem cell enrichment and differentiation.

Unlabelled: The interactions between cells and an underlying biomaterial are important for the promotion of cell adhesion, proliferation, and function. Mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) have great clinical potential as they are an adult stem cell population capable of multilineage differentiation. The relationship between MSC behavior and several material properties including substrate stiffness and pore size are well investigated, but there has been little research on the influence of porous architecture in a three-dimensional scaffold with a well-controlled architecture.

Effect of Dynamic Culture and Periodic Compression on Human Mesenchymal Stem Cell Proliferation and Chondrogenesis.

We have recently developed a bioreactor that can apply both shear and compressive forces to engineered tissues in dynamic culture. In our system, alginate hydrogel beads with encapsulated human mesenchymal stem cells (hMSCs) were cultured under different dynamic conditions while subjected to periodic, compressive force. A customized pressure sensor was developed to track the pressure fluctuations when shear forces and compressive forces were applied.

Tubular perfusion system for chondrocyte culture and superficial zone protein expression.

Tissue engineering is an alternative method for articular cartilage repair. Mechanical stimulus has been found to be an important element to the healthy development of chondrocytes and maintenance of their native phenotype. To enhance nutrient transport and apply mechanical stress, we have developed a novel bioreactor, the tubular perfusion system (TPS), to culture chondrocytes in three-dimensional scaffolds.

Neural differentiation of pluripotent cells in 3D alginate-based cultures.

Biomaterial-supported culture methods, allowing for directed three-dimensional differentiation of stem cells are an alternative to canonical two-dimensional cell cultures. In this paper, we evaluate the suitability of alginate for three-dimensional cultures to enhance differentiation of mouse embryonic stem cells (mESCs) towards neural lineages. We tested whether encapsulation of mESCs within alginate beads could support and/or enhance neural differentiation with respect to two-dimensional cultures.

Development of a dynamic stem cell culture platform for mesenchymal stem cell adhesion and evaluation.

The importance of providing a physiologically relevant environment for cell culture is well recognized. The combination of proper environmental cues which are provided in vivo by the bloodstream and extracellular matrix must be reproduced to properly examine cell response in vitro, and cannot be recapitulated using traditional culture on polystyrene. Here, we have developed a device, the dynamic stem cell culture platform (DSCCP), consisting of a biomimetic scaffold cultured within the dynamic environment of a perfusion bioreactor.

Centrifugation assay for measuring adhesion of serially passaged bovine chondrocytes to polystyrene surfaces.

A major obstacle in chondrocyte-based therapy for cartilage repair is the limited availability of cells that maintain their original phenotype. Propagation of chondrocytes as monolayer cultures on polystyrene surfaces is used extensively for amplifying cell numbers. However, chondrocytes undergo a phenotypic shift when propagated in this manner and display characteristics of more adherent fibroblastic cells.