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During Cord Blood Banking and Bone Marrow Processing for Autologous Stem Cell Therapy, Very Small Embryonic-like Stem Cells with the Highest Regenerative Potential are Discarded

Rachel Sandners

Because of their small size, Very Small Embryonic-Like Stem Cells (VSELs) are likely to be lost during cord blood banking and BM processing for autologous stem cell therapy. To test this idea, the researchers used human Umbilical Cord Blood (UCB, n=6) and the discarded Red Blood Cells (RBC) fraction obtained after separating mononuclear cells from human BM (n=6). According to immunolocalization and Quantitative Polymerase Chain Reaction (Q-PCR) studies, these cells are very tiny (3–5 m), have a high nucleo-cytoplasmic ratio, and exhibit nuclear Oct-4, cell surface protein SSEA-4, and other pluripotent markers such as Nanog, Sox-2, Rex-1, and Tert. In the “buffy” coat, which is normally banked or employed during autologous stem cell therapy, a separate population of slightly bigger, round Hematopoietic Stem Cells (HSCs) with cytoplasmic Oct-4 was discovered. Nuclear Oct-4–positive VSELs and numerous fibroblast-like Mesenchymal Stem Cells (MSCs) were found in immunohistochemical studies on Umbilical Cord Tissue (UCT) sections.