Comparison of hematopoietic stem cells derived from fresh and cryopreserved whole cord blood in the generation of humanized mice

PLoS One. 2012;7(10):e46772. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0046772. Epub 2012 Oct 11.

Abstract

To study the function and maturation of the human hematopoietic and immune system without endangering individuals, translational human-like animal models are needed. We compare the efficiency of CD34(+) stem cells isolated from cryopreserved cord blood from a blood bank (CCB) and fresh cord blood (FCB) in generating highly engrafted humanized mice in NOD-SCID IL2Rγ(null) (NSG) rodents. Interestingly, the isolation of CD34(+) cells from CCB results in a lower yield and purity compared to FCB. The purity of CD34(+) isolation from CCB decreases with an increasing number of mononuclear cells that is not evident in FCB. Despite the lower yield and purity of CD34(+) stem cell isolation from CCB compared to FCB, the overall reconstitution with human immune cells (CD45) and the differentiation of its subpopulations e.g., B cells, T cells or monocytes is comparable between both sources. In addition, independent of the cord blood origin, human B cells are able to produce high amounts of human IgM antibodies and human T cells are able to proliferate after stimulation with anti-CD3 antibodies. Nevertheless, T cells generated from FCB showed increased response to restimulation with anti-CD3. Our study reveals that the application of CCB samples for the engraftment of humanized mice does not result in less engraftment or a loss of differentiation and function of its subpopulations. Therefore, CCB is a reasonable alternative to FCB and allows the selection of specific genotypes (or any other criteria), which allows scientists to be independent from the daily changing birth rate.

Publication types

  • Comparative Study

MeSH terms

  • Animals
  • Antigens, CD34 / metabolism
  • Blood Preservation*
  • Cell Proliferation
  • Cell Separation
  • Cryopreservation*
  • Fetal Blood*
  • Hematopoietic Stem Cell Transplantation*
  • Hematopoietic Stem Cells / metabolism
  • Hematopoietic Stem Cells / physiology*
  • Humans
  • Immunoglobulins / blood
  • Lymphocytes / metabolism
  • Lymphocytes / physiology
  • Mice
  • Mice, Inbred NOD
  • Mice, SCID
  • Mice, Transgenic

Substances

  • Antigens, CD34
  • Immunoglobulins

Grants and funding

The authors have no support or funding to report.