Exosomes from Human Umbilical Cord Mesenchymal Stem Cells: Identification, Purification, and Biological Characteristics

Abstract EN

Our and other groups have discovered that mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) derived exosomes are a novel therapeutical modality for many diseases.

In this study, we summarized a method to extract and purify hucMSCs-exosomes using ultrafiltration and gradient centrifugation in our laboratory and proved that hucMSCs-exosomes prepared according to our procedure were stable and bioactive.

Results showed that exosomes derived from hucMSC were 40~100 nm and CD9 and CD81 positive.

Functionally, hucMSCs-exosomes promoted cell proliferation and protected against oxidative stress-induced cell apoptosis in vitro by activation of ERK1/2 and p38.

Interestingly, UV exposure abrogated the regulatory roles of exosomes under oxidative stress, indicating that hucMSCs-exosomes may regulate cell growth and apoptosis by exosomal shuttle of RNA.

Furthermore, cytokine profile analysis revealed that hucMSCs-exosomes contained high dose of IL-6, IL-8, and other cytokines.

The established method is practical and efficient, which provides a basis for further evaluating the potential of hucMSCs-exosomes as therapeutic agents.