Cord Blood Content

Abstract During the last decade, cord blood (CB) has been under intense investigation in in vitro differentiation models and in preclinical animal models ranging from bone to cartilage regeneration, cardiovascular diseases including myocardial disease, neuronal disorders, and liver failure. Several CB subpopulations as endothelial cells, mesenchymal stromal cells (CB MSC), unrestricted somatic stromal cells (USSC) as well as cells derived from the cord (umbilical cord mesenchymal-like fibroblasts) were approached already in distinct assays. The results clearly reveal that the immunophenotype shared by the adherent populations from CB and cord (beside endothelial cells) are more similar to each other, but functionally different to bone marrow mesenchymal stromal cells (BM MSC). Special attention should be paid to the genes associated to the process of osteogenesis and cartilage formation: In quantitative PCR experiments, unlike BM MSC, the CB stromal cells expressed this “bone signature” on a lower level. Thus, USSC and CB MSC exhibit a more immature status than BM MSC with respect to the genetic control of bone and cartilage formation. In contrast, the fibroblast-like stromal cells derived directly from cord tissue, though being of similar morphology and immunophenotype, failed to differentiate into osteoblasts, chondrocytes, and adipocytes. CB-derived cells also demonstrate notable paracrine effects resulting in the regeneration of cardiomyocytes and neural cells as well as support of hematopoiesis in vivo. In addition, these cells provide a defined source for reprogramming into induced pluripotent stem cells.