Background/Purpose:  To illustrate whether the subtypes of mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) have different cellular characteristics and therapeutic potentials, we separated CD146+/- mesenchymal stem cells and investigated their effects on chondrogenesis, osteogenesis, the Treg/TH17 cells expression and arthritis model.

Methods: We isolated CD146+ cells from human umbilical cords mesenchymal stem cells by beads sorting and then investigated the chondrogenesis and osteogenesis in a conditioned medium. The cytokine levels of IL-6 and TGFβ1 in CD146^+/- cells and the effects of CD146^+/- cells on Treg/Th17 cell population were analyzed by flow cytometry. CD146+/- cells were injected intraarticularly (IA) in experimental mice model, and then analyzed the clinical scores and the histological findings.

Results: CD146⁺ cells showed significant higher chondrogenesis than CD146^– cells. CD146⁺ cells also expressed lower levels of IL-6 than CD146^– cells. Furthermore, TH17 cells were significantly induced post addition of CD146^– cells in vitro and in vivo. Our data also showed that the intraarticular injection of CD146⁺ cells attenuated the disease progress in vivo. The immunohistological stains showed that only HLA-A⁺ CD146⁺ cells could be detected in the cartilage of CIA mice, and may preserve proteoglycans expression.

Conclusion: We firstly demonstrated that CD146⁺ cells have higher multilineage potency and can suppress the activation of TH17 cells in vitro and suppress disease activities in vivo. These data suggest that CD146⁺ cells have more therapeutic potentials than CD146^– cells for inflammatory arthritis.

---

« Back to 2014 ACR/ARHP Annual Meeting

ACR Meeting Abstracts - https://acrabstracts.org/abstract/the-role-of-cd146-in-the-therapeutic-potential-of-mesenchymal-stem-cells-in-favor-of-cd146-cells-for-experimental-arthritis/