Tracking of Human Wharton Jelly Stem Cells Labeled with Superparamagnetic Iron Oxide Nanoparticles and Seeded on Polyurethane/Chitosan/Hyaluronic Acid in Burn Wounds

Background: Burn is still a global public health problem and In-vivo cell tracking after transplantation in regenerative medicine remains an unmet challenge and limits current understanding of the wound healing mechanism through cell-based therapies. This study investigated the tracking of human Wharton's jelly stem cells (hWJSCs) seeded onto nanofibers electrospun with hyaluronic acid and labeled with superparamagnetic iron oxide nanoparticles (SPIONs) by magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) in burn injury.Method: The hWJSCs were characterized and assessed for growth kinetics. A total of ۳۰ rats were enrolled in three equal groups. Group ۱ underwent a scald burn injury without treatment, group ۲ was treated by a nanofiber electrospun with hyaluronic acid and group ۳ received hWJSCs labeled with SPIONs seeded onto a nanofiber electrospun with hyaluronic acid. Tensile strength was evaluated before and after interventions, real-time PCR assessed apoptosis, and Prussian blue staining, scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and MRI were used for the tracking of labeled cells.Results: The hWJSCs exhibited mesenchymal stem cell properties. Population doubling time was ۴۰.۱ hours. SPIONs did not show any toxic effects. The hWJSCs seeded onto a nanofiber electrospun with hyaluronic acid decreased Bax and increased Bcl-۲ gene expression. Internalization of SPIONs within hWJSCs was confirmed byPrussian blue staining, SEM, and MRI until day ۲۱. There was a significant difference between Young's moduli of normal skin and the group receiving hWJSCs seeded onto nanofibers electrospun with hyaluronic acid. Histological observations and SEM imaging confirmed that MRI is an accurate method to track SPION-labeled hWJSCs in vivo.Conclusions: This study showed that SPION labeling coupled with MRI can be used to further understand the fate of stem cells after transplantation in a burn model.

کلیدواژه ها:

Wharton Jelly stem cell ، hyaluronic acid ، scaffold ، Magnetic resonance imaging ، burn healing