Human CD34+ hematopoietic stem cells culture in humanized culture medium for cell therapy

Introduction: Hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT) is a proper treatment for many cancers, including malignant and non-malignant hematologic and immune disorders. However, due to the small quantity of HSCTs, their number should be increased ex vivo. Cell proliferation increase by animal serum can transmit certain diseases and immune problems to the recipient; therefore, replacement of culture media with media of human origin seems to be crucial. Acellular Wharton's jelly (AWJ) can be considered as an alternative medium in this regard. This study aimed to investigate the effect of AWJ substitution for fetal bovine serum (FBS) on the expression of myeloid and lymphoid specific markers and CD34(+) cells proliferation pattern following co-culture with mesenchymal stem cells. Materials and methods: In this study, CD34(+) umbilical cord blood HSCs were co-cultured with MSCs in the presence of 10% FBS or AWJ, stem cell factor (SCF), thrombopoietin (TPO), and FLT3-L and the proliferation pattern and expression of myeloid as well as lymphoid lineage markers were then evaluated. Results: The expression of myeloid and lymphoid specific markers was increased and decreased in AWJ and FBS containing culture medium, respectively. Conclusion: This study provided evidence for the differentiation of UCB-derived CD34(+) cells toward myeloid lineage and lack of their differentiation toward lymphoid lineage in AWJ containing culture medium.