Regulation and functional importance of human periodontal ligament mesenchymal stromal cells with various rates of CD146+ cells

• Published in: Frontiers in Cell and Developmental Biology
• Main Authors: Oliwia Miłek, Katharina Schwarz, Alma Miletić, Johanna Reisinger, Alexander Kovar, Christian Behm, Oleh Andrukhov
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: Frontiers Media S.A. 2025-03-01
• Subjects: mesenchymal stem cells; stromal cells; periodontal ligament; periodontitis; CD146
• Online Access: https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fcell.2025.1532898/full

IntroductionMesenchymal stromal cells (MSCs) with high expression of CD146 have superior properties for tissue regeneration. However, high variability in the rate of CD146+ cells among donors is observed. In this study, the possible reasons behind this variability in human periodontal ligament MSCs (hPDL-MSCs) were explored.MethodshPDL-MSCs were isolated from 22 different donors, and rates of CD146+ cells were analyzed by flow cytometry. Furthermore, populations with various rates of CD146+ cells were isolated with magnetic separation. The dependency of cell proliferation, viability, cell cycle, and osteogenic differentiation on the rates of CD146+ cells was investigated. Besides, the effects of various factors, like cell density, confluence, and inflammatory environment on the CD146+ rate and expression were analyzed.ResultsThe rate of CD146+ cells exhibited high variability between donors, with the percentage of CD146+ cells ranging from 3% to 67%. Higher percentage of CD146+ cells was associated with higher proliferation, presumably due to the higher percentage of cells in the S-phase, and higher osteogenic differentiation potential. Prolonged cell confluence and higher cell seeding density led to the decline in the rate of CD146+ cells. The surface rate of CD146 in hPDL-MSCs was stimulated by the treatment with interleukin-1β and tumor necrosis factor-α, and inhibited by the treatment with interferon-γ.ConclusionThese results suggest that hPDL-MSCs with high rate of CD146+ cells are a promising subpopulation for enhancing the effectiveness of MSC-based regenerative therapies, however the rate of CD146 is affected by various factors, which must be considered for cell propagation and their potential application in vivo.