Differentiation of multipotent adult germline stem cells derived from mouse testis into functional endothelial cells

Research output: Contribution to journalResearch articleContributedpeer-review

Contributors

  • I. Fen Cheng - , University of Göttingen (Author)
  • Diana Kaiser - , University of Göttingen (Author)
  • Daniela Huebscher - , University of Göttingen (Author)
  • Gerd Hasenfuss - , University of Göttingen (Author)
  • Kaomei Guan - , Institute of Pharmacology and Toxicology, University Medical Center Göttingen, University of Göttingen (Author)
  • Katrin Schäfer - , University of Göttingen (Author)

Abstract

Pluripotent stem cells hold great promise for the treatment of cardiovascular disease. We previously described multipotent adult germline stem cells (maGSCs) from mouse testis with differentiation potential similar to embryonic stem cells. The aim of this work was to differentiate maGSCs into functional endothelial cells and to study their potential for vasculogenesis. MaGSCs were cocultivated with OP9 stromal cells to induce differentiation into cardiovascular progenitors, i.e. fetal liver kinase 1-positive (Flk-1 +) cells. Five days later, Flk-1 + cells were separated using fluorescence-activated cell sorting, followed by cultivation on collagen type IV under endothelial differentiation conditions. At different time points, maGSC-derived endothelial-like cells were characterized using RT-PCR, flow cytometry, immunofluorescence and functional assays. Cultivation of Flk-1 + cells resulted in the progressive upregulation of endothelial cell markers, including VE-cadherin, von Willebrand factor and endothelial nitric oxide synthase. Moreover, Flk-1 + maGSC-derived endothelial-like cells were able to branch and form networks in vitro and promoted functional blood vessel formation in vivo. Importantly, Flk-1 + cells retained their potential to proliferate and could be continuously expanded, while the ability of contact inhibition was preserved. Thus, maGSCs may provide a useful source of endothelial-like cells to study the basic mechanisms of vasculogenesis or endothelial differentiation.

Details

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)207-220
Number of pages14
JournalJournal of vascular research
Volume49
Issue number3
Publication statusPublished - May 2012
Peer-reviewedYes

External IDs

PubMed 22433575

Keywords

Sustainable Development Goals

Keywords

  • Endothelial progenitor cells, Fetal liver kinase-1, Multipotent adult germline stem cells, Vascular endothelial growth factor, Vasculogenesis