Homogeneity and heterogeneity of biological characteristics in mesenchymal stem cells from human umbilical cords and exfoliated deciduous teeth.

Mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) have proven powerful potential for cell-based therapy both in regenerative medicine and disease treatment. Human umbilical cords and exfoliated deciduous teeth are the main sources to derive MSCs with nearly no donor injury and ethical issue. The goal of this study was to investigate the differences of biological characteristics in human umbilical cord mesenchymal stem cells (UCMSCs) and stem cells from human exfoliated deciduous teeth (SHEDs). UCMSCs and SHEDs were identified by flow cytometry. The proliferation, differentiation, migration, chemotaxis, paracrine, immunomodulatory, neurite growth-promoting capabilities and acetaldehyde dehydrogenase (ALDH) activity were comparatively studied between these two MSCs in vitro. The results showed that both SHEDs and UCMSCs expressed cell surface markers characteristic of MSCs. Furthermore, SHEDs exhibited better capacities in proliferation, migration, promotion of neurite growth and chondrogenic differentiation. Meanwhile, UCMSCs showed more outstanding adipogenic differentiation and chemotaxis abilities. Additionally, there is no significant difference in osteogenic differentiation, immunomodulatory capacity, and the proportion of ALDH bright compartment. Our findings indicate that although both UCMSCs and SHEDs are mesenchymal stem cells and presented some similar biological characteristics, they also have differences in many aspects, which might be instructive to future clinical cellular therapeutics for different diseases.