Molecular characterization of bovine amniotic fluid derived stem cells with an underlying focus on their comparative neuronal potential at different passages

Abstract Background The excellence in the field of stem cell therapy demands alternative and more convenient stem cells for potential applications. Researchers have opted for least invasive and broadly multipotent cells with minimum ethical concerns. Bovine amniotic fluid derived mesenchymal stem cells (BAF-MSCs) due to their ease of collection and owing similar gestational length to that of human could be presumed as an attractive large animal model for biomedical and biotechnology research Methods Bovine amniotic fluid derived stem cells were isolated from abattoir based samples and characterized for epithelial, neuronal, mesenchymal and pluripotent markers and by qPCR and immunofluorescence studies at P1, P3, P5 and P7 alongside population doubling time, growth curve and multilineage differentiation studies. Results The cells were explored for unique expression of Sox2, which was observed to be up regulated by increase in passage number and Nestin which downregulated during further passaging on mesenchymal cells in this study. The cells also co-expressed Oct ¾ at initial passages which diminished within further passages. Evidence regarding diversity and heterogeneity in different cell population in amniotic fluid was recorded by positive expression of epithelial cell markers like pan Cytokeratin and p63 during early passages. The study suggested that cells with higher expression of Sox2 generated comparatively larger neurospheres with comparative strong expression of Sox2, Nestin by immunofluorescence staining and qPCR analysis. Besides BAF-MSCs derived neurospheres were also shown to express pro-neuronal markers like s-III Tubulin, GAP43 and ASCL-1. Conclusions This study explores and characterizes BAF-MSCs for their multipotent and neurogenic potentials and their use for clinical applications, though more detailed studies are needed to determine the exact pathways linked with neurogenic capacities of these cells and their morphological assessments at different gestational ages in bovines. The knowledge from the bovine model after detailed studies, proven safety and efficacy could also be used to understand substitutive strategies to investigate MSCs physiology at different trimesters and potential application of these cells for human and veterinary regenerative medicine provided the animal ethics are carefully monitored.