Abstract
Background/Aims
Mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) are multipotent progenitor cells currently under investigation for its efficacy as the treatment for inflammatory bowel disease. In this study, we evaluated the efficacy of tonsil-derived mesenchymal stem cells (T-MSCs) as a novel source of mesenchymal stem cells and traced their localization in a murine model of acute colitis induced by dextran sulfate sodium (DSS).
Methods
C57BL/6 mice were randomly assigned to the following three groups: the normal control group, DSS colitis group (DSS+phosphate buffered saline), and T-MSC group (DSS+T-MSCs, 1106). The severity of colitis was assessed by determining the severity of symptoms of colitis, colon length, histopathologic grade, and levels of inflammatory cytokines. T-MSCs labeled with PKH26 were traced in vivo.
Results
The T-MSC group, compared with the DSS colitis group, showed a significantly lower disease activity index (11.3±1.5 vs. 8.3±1.9, p=0.015) at sacrifice and less reduction of body weight (−17.1±5.0% vs. −8.1±6.9%, p=0.049). In the T-MSC group, the histologic colitis score was significantly decreased compared with the DSS colitis group (22.6±3.8 vs. 17.0±3.4, p=0.039). IL-6 and IL-1β, the pro-inflammatory cytokines, were also significantly reduced after a treatment with T-MSCs. In vivo tracking revealed no PKH26-la-belled T-MSCs in the colonic tissue of mice with acute colitis.
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![]() | Fig. 1.Induction of acute colitis. Acute colitis was induced by 3% DSS treatment for 7 days. T-MSC was injected intraperitoneally on day 3 after an induction of acute colitis. PBS only was administered as a control in the DSS colitis group. DSS, dextran sulfate sodium; T-MSC, tonsil-derived mesenchymal stem cell; PBS, phosphate-buffered salilne. |
![]() | Fig. 2.Effect of treatment with T-MSCs on inflammatory symptoms. T-MSC ameliorated the inflammatory symptoms assessed by the DAI in DSS-induced acute colitis. (A) The difference of DAI between the T-MSC group and the DSS colitis group assessed daily was maximized by day 8. (B) The mean DAI of the T-MSC group on day 8 was significantly lower than that of the DSS colitis group (11.3±1.5 vs. 8.3±1.9, p=0.015). (C) The reduction of body weight at sacrifice was attenuated with T-MSCs treatment (−17.1±5.0% vs. −8.1±6.9%, p=0.049). Data are presented as the mean±SEM (*p<0.05). T-MSCs, tonsil-derived mesenchymal stem cells; DAI, disease activity index; DSS, dextran sulfate sodium; PBS, phosphate-buffered salilne. |
![]() | Fig. 3.Treatment with T-MSCs reduced the colonic damage microscopically. (A) The induction of acute colitis showed an extensive infiltration of inflammatory cells, crypt damage, edema, and ulceration. Treatment of T-MSCs reduced the infiltration of inflammatory cells and extent of disease. (B) The histologic colitis score was significantly reduced after T-MSCs treatment (* p<0.05). DSS, dextran sulfate sodium; PBS, phosphate-buffered sal-ilne; T-MSC, tonsil-derived mesenchymal stem cell. |
![]() | Fig. 4.The effect of T-MSCs on the expression of pro-inflammatory cytokines, IL-6, TNF-α, IL-1β and IL-17 and chemokines, KC, MIP-2. The mRNA expression of inflammatory mediators was measured in the colonic mucosa by real-time PCR. The level of IL-6 (A) and IL-1β (C) was reduced significantly in the colonic mucosa after a treatment with T-MSCs compared with the DSS colitis group. The level of TNF-α (B), IL-17 (D), KC (E), and MIP-2 (F) were not different between the two groups. Data are presented as the mean±SEM. (*p<0.05, **p<0.01). T-MSCs, tonsil-derived mesenchymal stem cells. |
![]() | Fig. 5.Fluorescent microscopy analysis of T-MSC labeled with PKH26. The localization was measured 5 days after intraperitoneal injection. Microscopic examination revealed no distribution of red colored T-MSC-PKH26 cells in the colon of mice with acute colitis. In merge images, nuclei were stained with DAPI (blue). Original magnificationx200. T-MSC, tonsil-derived mesenchymal stem cell; DSS, dextran sulfate sodium; PBS, phosphate-buffered salilne. |
Table 1.
Primer Sequences of the Reverse Transcription Polymerase Chain Reaction (real time-PCR)