Clinical-scale expansion of CD34 cord blood cells amplifies committed progenitors and rapid scid repopulation cells.

Umbilical cord blood (UCB) transplantation is associated with long periods of aplastic anaemia. This undesirable situation is due to the low cell dose available per unit of UCB and the immaturity of its progenitors. To overcome this, we present a cell culture strategy aimed at the expansion of the CD34 population and the generation of granulocyte lineage-committed progenitors.

Evaluation of a cell-banking strategy for the production of clinical grade mesenchymal stromal cells from Wharton's jelly.

Background Aims: Umbilical cord (UC) has been proposed as a source of mesenchymal stromal cells (MSCs) for use in experimental cell-based therapies provided that its collection does not raise any risk to the donor, and, similar to bone marrow and lipoaspirates, UC-MSCs are multipotent cells with immuno-modulative properties. However, some of the challenges that make a broader use of UC-MSCs difficult include the limited availability of fresh starting tissue, time-consuming processing for successful derivation of cell lines, and the lack of information on identity, potency and genetic stability in extensively expanded UC-MSCs, which are necessary for banking relevant cell numbers for preclinical and clinical studies.

Methods: Factors affecting the success of the derivation process (namely, time elapsed from birth to processing and weight of fragments), and methods for establishing a two-tiered system of Master Cell Bank and Working Cell Bank of UC-MSCs were analyzed.