Background: Human Wharton's Jelly-derived Mesenchymal Stem Cells (hWJ-MSCs) have immunosuppressive and anti-inflammatory properties. As such, they exhibit an attractive therapeutic option for autoimmune disorders. Microencapsulation provides adequate protection against immune destruction of transplanted cells. We aimed to investigate the cellular and humoral immune responses in the host rats transplanted with alginate microencapsulated hWJMSCs in their peritoneal cavities.
Methods: hWJ-MSCs were microencapsulated in alginate microspheres and were transplanted intraperitoneally to rats. After 30 days, for the evaluation of rats' cellular and humoral immunity against hWJ-MSCs, the spleen mononuclear cells of rats were stained with CFSE and co-cultured with hWJ-MSCs for 3 days. Then the proliferation of spleen cells against hWJ-MSC was evaluated by flow cytometry, and Interferon-gamma (IFN-γ) secretion was measured by ELISA. For evaluating humoral immunity, the serum of different rat groups was incubated with hWJ-MSCs, and serummediated cytotoxicity was measured by MTT assay and antibody binding by cell-based ELISA.
Results: There were no differences between the spleen mononuclear cells proliferation, secretion of IFN-γ, serum mediated cytotoxicity, and anti-WJMSCs antibodies in rats transplanted with encapsulated and non-encapsulated hWJ MSCs. Encapsulated and non-encapsulated hWJ-MSCs did not stimulate the immune system in rats at the same time.
Conclusion: We suggest using a 3D culture for proliferation and having a more favorable function in the transplantation of these hWJ-MSCs.