Development
Navid Dehnavi; Zohreh Moeini; Tahereh Foroutan
Abstract
Objective: Nanoparticles, owing to their unique physicochemical properties, have emerged as promising agents for biomedical applications, particularly in tissue engineering and regenerative medicine. Among the various types of nanoparticles, graphene oxide (GO) has garnered significant attention because ...
Read More
Objective: Nanoparticles, owing to their unique physicochemical properties, have emerged as promising agents for biomedical applications, particularly in tissue engineering and regenerative medicine. Among the various types of nanoparticles, graphene oxide (GO) has garnered significant attention because of its biocompatibility and ability to facilitate cellular processes. This study investigated the role of graphene oxide nanoparticles in promoting neural differentiation of mouse mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs), focusing on the underlying mechanisms and outcomes of such interactions.
Materials and Methods: In this study, bone marrow-derived stem cells were isolated from the femurs of mice using a flushing method. The cells were cultured in three distinct groups for 14 days. Control Group: Cells were cultured in a neural differentiation medium without additives. Group 1: Cells were cultured in a general culture medium supplemented with 1.5 µg/ml of graphene oxide. Group 2: Cells were cultured in neural differentiation medium with 1.5 µg/ml of graphene oxide. To assess the effects of graphene oxide on cell viability and differentiation, MTT assays were employed to evaluate cytotoxicity, while immunocytochemistry (ICC) techniques were used to detect the expression of neural differentiation markers, including Sox2, β-tubulin III, and MAP2.
Results: The results demonstrated that both Group 1 and Group 2 exhibited expression of all three neural differentiation markers, Sox2, β-tubulin III, and MAP2, comparable to that of the control group. This indicates that the presence of graphene oxide, even in general culture medium, can promote neural differentiation. However, it is noteworthy that the dose of graphene oxide used in this study also exhibited no cytotoxic effects on the cells, suggesting a delicate balance between promoting differentiation and maintaining cell viability. The findings of this study underscore the potential of graphene oxide nanoparticles as a tool for enhancing neural differentiation of mesenchymal stem cells. The ability of GO to induce the expression of key proteins associated with neural differentiation without the need for additional nerve growth factors highlights its efficacy as a biocompatible scaffold.
Conclusion: This study provides evidence that graphene oxide nanoparticles can effectively promote the neural differentiation of mouse mesenchymal stem cells. The ability to induce the expression of critical neural markers through both direct cellular interactions and scaffold formation makes graphene oxide a valuable component in neuroregenerative strategies. Future research should focus on elucidating the precise mechanisms by which graphene oxide influences cellular pathways and optimizing its application in stem cell therapy for neurological disorders.
Development
Faeze Zarean; Somayeh Arabzadeh; Sarah Rajabi; Saeideh Erfanian; Mahmood Talkhabi
Abstract
Bone is the hardest and one of the most important tissues in the body. In case of bone damage, the current treatments do not completely repair and regenerate the bone. For this reason, cell-based tissue engineering strategies, especially Mesenchymal Stem Cells (MSCs), have received attention. MSCs have ...
Read More
Bone is the hardest and one of the most important tissues in the body. In case of bone damage, the current treatments do not completely repair and regenerate the bone. For this reason, cell-based tissue engineering strategies, especially Mesenchymal Stem Cells (MSCs), have received attention. MSCs have the ability to self-renew and differentiate into different cell types, including bone cells, cartilage cells, and fat cells, among others. They are found in various tissues throughout the body, including bone marrow, adipose tissue, and umbilical cord tissue. Today, MSCs are a valuable resource for regenerative medicine and tissue engineering applications. In addition to the cells, scaffolds are another essential element of tissue engineering. One of these scaffolds is decellularized tissue-derived hydrogels, which are three-dimensional network of hydrophilic polymer chains that can absorb and retain a significant amount of water. In tissue engineering, they mimic the natural extracellular matrix of tissues, providing a suitable environment for cells to attach, proliferate, and differentiate. In the current study, we aimed to investigate the effects of decellularized skeletal muscle-derived hydrogel, known as Myogel, on bone marrow-derived MSCs biological behaviors, including proliferation, viability and migration. In this study, MSCs were isolated from tibia and femur of adult Wistar rats. MSCs were cultured in a complete medium (a-MEM containing 15% fetal bovine serum (FBS) and 1% penicillin/streptomycin (Pen/Strep)). The identity of cells was determined by morphology (using inverted microscope) and expression of specific CD markers (using Flowcytometry). Skeletal muscle was decellularized and accuracy of decellularization was evaluated using special staining. Then Myogel was prepared from digested decellularized skeletal muscle. Here, Myogel substrate was used as the control group, gelatin substrate as the positive control, and un-coated plates as the negative control. The effect of Myogel on survival (MTT method), proliferation (drawing the growth curve and calculating the doubling time of the cell population), cell cycle profile (flow cytometry method), and cell migration (scratch method) were investigated. The MTT test showed that the survival of MSCs in Myogel substrate with a concentration of 0.2 mg/ml was higher than the survival of MSCs in gelatin substrate with a concentration of 0.1 mg/ml and the survival of MSCs in gelatin was higher than the survival of control MSCs. Myogel substrate increased the proliferation and migration of cells and decreased the doubling time of MSCs population. Examining the cell cycle profile showed that a high percentage of cells cultured on Myogel were in the G1 and S phase of the cell cycle, indicating an increase in cell division speed by gelatin and, in the next degree, by Myogel. Therefore, Myogel can be used as a suitable substrate to increase the proliferative and migratory potential of MSCs, which are an important factor in tissue engineering.