Tissue-specific differentiation potency of mesenchymal stromal cells from perinatal tissues

Human perinatal tissue is an abundant source of mesenchymal stromal cells(MSCs) and lacks the ethical concerns. Perinatal MSCs can be obtained from various tissues as like amnion, chorion, and umbilical cord. Still, little is known of the distinct nature of each MSC type. In this study, we successfully isolated and cultured MSCs from amnion(AMSCs), chorion(CMSCs), and umbilical cord(UC-MSCs). Proliferation potential was different among them, that AMSCs revealed the lowest proliferation rate due to increased Annexin V and senescence-associated β-galactosidase positive cells. We demonstrated distinct characteristic gene expression according to the source of the original tissue using microarray. In particular, genes associated with apoptosis and senescence including CDKN2A were up-regulated in AMSCs. In CMSCs, genes associated with heart morphogenesis and blood circulation including HTR2B were up-regulated. Genes associated with neurological system processes including NPY were up-regulated in UC-MSCs. Quantitative RT-PCR confirmed the gene expression data. And in vitro differentiation of MSCs demonstrated that CMSCs and UC-MSCs had a more pronounced ability to differentiate into cardiomyocyte and neural cells, respectively. This study firstly demonstrated the innate tissue-specific differentiation potency of perinatal MSCs which can be helpful in choosing more adequate cell sources for better outcome in a specific disease.