Assessment of the feasibility of human amniotic membrane stem cell-derived cardiomyocytes in vitro.

Myocardial infarction (MI) is a leading cause of death worldwide, resulting in extensive loss of cardiomyocytes and subsequent heart failure. Inducing cardiac differentiation of stem cells is a potential approach for myocardial regeneration therapy to improve post-MI prognosis. Mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) have several advantages, including immune privilege and multipotent differentiation potential.

Oxidative Stress-Induced Alterations of Cellular Localization and Expression of Aquaporin 1 Lead to Defected Water Transport upon Peritoneal Fibrosis.

Being one of the renal replacement therapies, peritoneal dialysis (PD) maintains around 15% of end-stage kidney disease patients' lives; however, complications such as peritoneal fibrosis and ultrafiltration failure during long-term PD compromise its application. Previously, we established a sodium hypochlorite (NaClO)-induced peritoneal fibrosis porcine model, which helped to bridge the rodent model toward pre-clinical human peritoneal fibrosis research. In this study, the peritoneal equilibration test (PET) was established to evaluate instant functional changes in the peritoneum in the pig model.

S100A8/A9 Enhances Immunomodulatory and Tissue-Repairing Properties of Human Amniotic Mesenchymal Stem Cells in Myocardial Ischemia-Reperfusion Injury.

Paracrine factors of human mesenchymal stem cells (hMSCs) have the potential of preventing adverse cardiac remodeling after myocardial infarction (MI). S100A8 and S100A9 are calcium-binding proteins playing essential roles in the regulation of inflammation and fibrous tissue formation, and they might modulate the paracrine effect of hMSCs. We isolated human amniotic mesenchymal stem cells (hAMSCs) and examined the changes in the expression level of regulatory genes of inflammation and fibrosis after hAMSCs were treated with S100A8/A9.

New design to remove leukocytes from platelet-rich plasma (PRP) based on cell dimension rather than density.

Platelet-rich plasma (PRP) can stimulate the proliferation of stem cells and have a positive effect on tissue repair. Although many commercialized PRP preparation kits are already on the market, first-line clinical workers are still not satisfied with most of the PRP kits. The work of commercial PRP kits is based on the density of blood elements.

Overexpression of Adiponectin Receptor 1 Inhibits Brown and Beige Adipose Tissue Activity in Mice.

Adult humans and mice possess significant classical brown adipose tissues (BAT) and, upon cold-induction, acquire brown-like adipocytes in certain depots of white adipose tissues (WAT), known as beige adipose tissues or WAT browning/beiging. Activating thermogenic classical BAT or WAT beiging to generate heat limits diet-induced obesity or type-2 diabetes in mice. Adiponectin is a beneficial adipokine resisting diabetes, and causing "healthy obese" by increasing WAT expansion to limit lipotoxicity in other metabolic tissues during high-fat feeding.

STAT3 Is an Upstream Regulator of in the Maternal-To-Zygotic Transition of Mouse Embryos.

The maternal-to-zygotic transition (MZT), which controls maternal signaling to synthesize zygotic gene products, promotes the preimplantation development of mouse zygotes to the two-cell stage. Our previous study reported that mouse granzyme g (Gzmg), a serine-type protease, is required for the MZT. In this study, we further identified the maternal factors that regulate the promoter activity in the zygote to the two-cell stage of mouse embryos.

Glucocorticoid transiently upregulates mitochondrial biogenesis in the osteoblast.

Glucocorticoid (GC)-induced bone loss is the most prevalent form of secondary osteoporosis. Previous studies demonstrated that long-term incubation of dexamethasone (DEX) induced oxidative stress and mitochondrial dysfunctions, consequently leading to apoptosis of differentiated osteoblasts. This DEX-induced cell death might be the main causes of bone loss.

The development of laminin-alginate microspheres encapsulated with Ginsenoside Rg1 and ADSCs for breast reconstruction after lumpectomy.

Many technologies have been developed for breast reconstruction after lumpectomy. Although the technologies achieved promising success in clinical, there are still many shortages hanging over and trouble the researchers. Tissue engineering technology was introduced to plastic surgery that gave a light to lumpectomy patients in breast reconstruction.

Olfactory ensheathing cells improve the survival of porcine neural xenografts in a Parkinsonian rat model.

Background: Parkinson's disease (PD) features the motor control deficits resulting from irreversible, progressive degeneration of dopaminergic (DA) neurons of the nigrostriatal pathway. Although intracerebral transplantation of human fetal ventral mesencephalon (hfVM) has been proven effective at reviving DA function in the PD patients, this treatment is clinically limited by availability of hfVM and the related ethical issues. Homologous tissues to hfVM, such as porcine fetal ventral mesencephalon (pfVM) thus present a strong clinical potential if immune response following xenotransplantation could be tamed.

The Effect of Sertoli Cells on Xenotransplantation and Allotransplantation of Ventral Mesencephalic Tissue in a Rat Model of Parkinson's Disease.

Intra-striatal transplantation of fetal ventral mesencephalic (VM) tissue has a therapeutic effect on patients with Parkinson's disease (PD). Sertoli cells (SCs) possess immune-modulatory properties that benefit transplantation. We hypothesized that co-graft of SCs with VM tissue can attenuate rejection.

Bone regeneration in Ds-Red pig calvarial defect using allogenic transplantation of EGFP-pMSCs - A comparison of host cells and seeding cells in the scaffold.

Background: Cells, scaffolds, and factors are the triad of regenerative engineering; however, it is difficult to distinguish whether cells in the regenerative construct are from the seeded cells or host cells via the host blood supply. We performed a novel in vivo study to transplant enhanced green fluorescent pig mesenchymal stem cells (EGFP-pMSCs) into calvarial defect of DsRed pigs. The cell distribution and proportion were distinguished by the different fluorescent colors through the whole regenerative period.

Different susceptibilities of osteoclasts and osteoblasts to glucocorticoid-induced oxidative stress and mitochondrial alterations.

Glucocorticoid-induced bone loss is the most common form of secondary osteoporosis. This toxic effect has not been efficiently managed, possibly due to the incomplete understanding of the extraordinarily diverse cellular responses induced by glucocorticoid treatment. Previous literatures revealed that high dose of exogenous glucocorticoid triggers apoptosis in osteocytes and osteoblasts.

A mini-pig model for evaluating the efficacy of autologous platelet patches on induced acute full thickness wound healing.

Background: Autologous platelet concentrates are currently widely used across different areas of regenerative medicine in order to enhance the wound healing process. Although several protocols for platelet concentrates are available, their application remains difficult due to different protocols leading to distinct products with vary potential biological uses. In this study, we attempted to make a platelet patch (PP) using mixtures of platelet rich plasma (PRP) injection and platelet rich fibrin (PRF) to promote wound repair and regeneration.

In vitro culture and characterization of duck primordial germ cells.

This study aimed to isolate, culture, and characterize duck primordial germ cells (PGCs) and to compare these cells with chicken PGCs. We first cultured Muscovy duck (Cairina moschata) circulating PGCs and gonadal PGCs (gPGCs) in the modified serum-containing medium used to amplify chicken PGCs. gPGCs were found to proliferate better in serum-free chemically defined medium than in serum-containing medium.

Three-dimensional culture of chicken primordial germ cells (cPGCs) in defined media containing the functional polymer FP003.

Scalable production of avian cell lines exhibits a valuable potential on therapeutic application by producing recombinant proteins and as the substrate for virus growth due to the special glycosylation occurs in avian species. Chicken primordial germ cells (cPGCs), a germinal pluripotent avian cell type, present the ability of self-renewal, an anchorage-independent cell growth and the ability to be genetically modified. This cell type could be an interesting bioreactor system for industrial purposes.

BMP-2 gene transfection of bone marrow stromal cells to induce osteoblastic differentiation in a rat calvarial defect model.

Unlabelled: Gene therapy for bone tissue engineering has been widely developed. Recently, non-viral DNA-based gene therapy has been reported to be a safer and more efficient method of delivering DNA into target cells. We used a non-viral gene transfection reagent to delivery bone morphogenetic protein-2 (BMP-2) gene into bone marrow stromal cells (BMSCs).

Correction to: Stage-dependent piRNAs in chicken implicated roles in modulating male germ cell development.

Following publication of the original article [1], the authors reported that one of the authors' names is spelled incorrectly.

Stage-dependent piRNAs in chicken implicated roles in modulating male germ cell development.

Background: The PIWI/piRNA pathway is a conserved machinery important for germ cell development and fertility. This piRNA-guided molecular machinery is best known for repressing derepressed transposable elements (TE) during epigenomic reprogramming. The extent to which piRNAs are involved in modulating transcripts beyond TEs still need to be clarified, and it may be a stage-dependent event.

Surface modification: activation and deactivation of osteogenic differentiation based on detachable growth factor protein.

An advanced material interface is modified by using a substrate-independent coating of detachable poly-para-xylylene, enabling dynamical control of the immobilization and detachment of biomolecules, and a previously installed biological function is deactivated or tuned with reduced activity. The induction of osteogenesis activity, and subsequent deactivation of such osteogenesis activity, is demonstrated.

Infusion of Porcine-Derived Amniotic Fluid Stem Cells for Treatment of Experimental Colitis in Mice.

Recently, stem cells have offered an alternative treatment for inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) or colitis to overcome the poor outcomes associated with current therapies. Amniotic fluid-derived stem cells (AFSCs) have the potential for the regeneration of impaired organs and the recovery of normal physiologic functions of damaged tissues without ethical concerns or risk of tumor formation. In this work, we aimed to examine the therapeutic effects of infusion of porcine AFSCs (pAFSCs) in dextran sulfate sodium (DSS)-induced colitis in mice.

Artificial insemination of Holstein heifers with sex-sorted semen during the hot season in a subtropical region.

Our aim was to investigate insemination techniques in order to improve pregnancy rates of artificial insemination (AI) using sex-sorted semen (sexed AI) in cattle in tropical and subtropical (T/ST) regions. In T/ST regions, the pregnancy rates by sexed AI are reportedly the lowest in the hottest months of the year, with less than 15% in cows and 35-40% in heifers (PMID 24048822). We compared sexed AI by depositing the semen into the uterine body (UB-AI, n = 12) versus the unilateral uterine horn (UUH-AI, n = 14) of pre-ovulation heifers.

Developmental origin of postnatal cardiomyogenic progenitor cells.

Aim: To trace the cell origin of the cells involved in postnatal cardiomyogenesis.

Materials & Methods: Nkx2.5 enhancer-eGFP (Nkx2.

External Volume Expansion Modulates Vascular Growth and Functional Maturation in a Swine Model.

Despite increasing application of the pre-grafting expansion during autologous fat transplantation in breast reconstruction, little is known about its mechanism of action. To address that, ventral skins of miniature pigs were treated over a 10-day or 21-day period, with continuous suction at -50 mm Hg via a 7-cm diameter rubber-lined suction-cup device. Soft tissue thickness increased immediately after this external volume expansion (EVE) treatment, such increase completely disappeared by the next day.

Differentiation of Enhanced Green Fluorescent Protein-Labeled Mouse Amniotic Fluid-Derived Stem Cells into Cardiomyocyte-Like Beating Cells.

Background: Amniotic fluid-derived stem cells (AFSCs) possess optimal differentiation potential and are a promising resource for cell therapy and tissue engineering. Mouse is a good model to be studied for pre-clinical research.

Methods: In this study, we successfully established enhanced green fluorescent protein mouse-derived amniotic fluid stem cells (EGFP-mAFSCs) and investigated whether EGFP-mAFSCs possess the ability to differentiate into cardiomyocytes by in vitro culture.

Exosomal miR-10a derived from amniotic fluid stem cells preserves ovarian follicles after chemotherapy.

Chemotherapy (CTx)-induced premature ovarian failure (POF) in woman remains clinically irreversible. Amniotic fluid stem cells (AFSCs) have shown the potential to treat CTx-induced POF; however, the underlying mechanism is unclear. Here we demonstrate that AFSC-derived exosomes recapitulate the anti-apoptotic effect of AFSCs on CTx-damaged granulosa cells (GCs), which are vital for the growth of ovarian follicles.