The Correlation between Peripheral Blood Index and Immune Cell Expansion in Vietnamese Elderly Lung Cancer Patients.

(1) Background: The dysfunction and reduced proliferation of peripheral CD8+ T cells and natural killer (NK) cells have been observed in both aging and cancer patients, thereby challenging the adoption of immune cell therapy in these subjects. In this study, we evaluated the growth of these lymphocytes in elderly cancer patients and the correlation of peripheral blood (PB) indices to their expansion. (2) Method: This retrospective study included 15 lung cancer patients who underwent autologous NK cell and CD8+ T cell therapy between January 2016 and December 2019 and 10 healthy individuals. (3) Results: On average, CD8+ T lymphocytes and NK cells were able to be expanded about 500 times from the PB of elderly lung cancer subjects. Particularly, 95% of the expanded NK cells highly expressed the CD56 marker. The expansion of CD8+ T cells was inversely associated with the CD4+:CD8+ ratio and the frequency of PB-CD4+ T cells in PB. Likewise, the expansion of NK cells was inversely correlated with the frequency of PB-lymphocytes and the number of PB-CD8+ T cells. The growth of CD8+ T cells and NK cells was also inversely correlated with the percentage and number of PB-NK cells. (4) Conclusion: PB indices are intrinsically tied to immune cell health and could be leveraged to determine CD8 T and NK cell proliferation capacity for immune therapies in lung cancer patients.

The density of bone marrow mononuclear cells and CD34+ cells in patients with three neurologic conditions.

BACKGROUND: This study aimed to identify the density of mononuclear cells (MNCs) and CD34+ cells in the bone marrow of patients with three neurologic conditions. METHODS: The study included 88 patients with three neurologic conditions: 40 with cerebral palsy (CP) due to oxygen deprivation (OD), 23 with CP related to neonatal icterus (NI), and 25 with neurological sequelae after traumatic brain injury. Bone marrow aspiration was conducted from the patients' bilateral anterior iliac crest under general anesthesia in an operating theater. MNCs were isolated by Ficoll gradient centrifugation and then infused intrathecally. RESULTS: There was a significant difference in the average MNC per ml and percentage of CD34+ cells by the type of disease, age group, and infusion time (p value < 0.05). The multivariable regression model showed the percentage of CD34+ association with the outcome (gross motor function 88 items- GMFM-88) in patients with CP. CONCLUSIONS: The density of MNCs was 5.22 million cells per mL and 5.03% CD34+ cells in patients with three neurologic conditions. The highest density of MNCs in each ml of bone marrow was found in patients with CP due to OD, whereas the percentage of CD34+ cells was the highest among patients with CP related to NI.

Differential Cytotoxicity of Curcumin-Loaded Micelles on Human Tumor and Stromal Cells.

Although curcumin in the form of nanoparticles has been demonstrated as a potential anti-tumor compound, the impact of curcumin and nanocurcumin in vitro on normal cells and in vivo in animal models is largely unknown. This study evaluated the toxicity of curcumin-loaded micelles in vitro and in vivo on several tumor cell lines, primary stromal cells, and zebrafish embryos. Breast tumor cell line (MCF7) and stromal cells (human umbilical cord vein endothelial cells, human fibroblasts, and human umbilical cord-derived mesenchymal stem cells) were used in this study. A zebrafish embryotoxicity (FET) assay was conducted following the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) Test 236. Compared to free curcumin, curcumin PM showed higher cytotoxicity to MCF7 cells in both monolayer culture and multicellular tumor spheroids. The curcumin-loaded micelles efficiently penetrated the MCF7 spheroids and induced apoptosis. The nanocurcumin reduced the viability and disturbed the function of stromal cells by suppressing cell migration and tube formation. The micelles demonstrated toxicity to the development of zebrafish embryos. Curcumin-loaded micelles demonstrated toxicity to both tumor and normal primary stromal cells and zebrafish embryos, indicating that the use of nanocurcumin in cancer treatment should be carefully investigated and controlled.

Optimization of human umbilical cord blood-derived mesenchymal stem cell isolation and culture methods in serum- and xeno-free conditions.

BACKGROUND: Although umbilical cord blood (UCB) is identified as a source of mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) with various advantages, the success in cell isolation is volatile. Therefore, it is necessary to optimize methods of cord blood-derived MSC (UCB-MSC) isolation and culture. In this study, we evaluated the efficiency of UCB-MSC isolation and expansion using different commercially available serum- and xeno-free media and investigated the capacity of autologous serum and plasma as a supplement to support cell proliferation. Additionally, we defined the presence of multilineage-differentiating stress-enduring (Muse) cells in the UCB-MSC population. Functions of UCB-MSC in in vitro angiogenesis processes and anti-cancer were also verified. METHODS: Mononuclear cells were isolated using density gradient separation and cultured in four commercial media kits, as well as four surface coating solutions. UCB-MSCs were characterized and tested on tube formation assay, and co-cultured with SK-MEL cells in a transwell system. RESULTS: The results showed that only StemMACS™ MSC Expansion Media is more appropriate to isolate and culture UCB-MSCs. The cells exhibited a high cell proliferation rate, CFU forming capability, MSC surface marker expression, trilineage differentiate potential, and chromosome stability. In addition, the culture conditions with autologous serum coating and autologous plasma supplement enhanced cell growth and colony forming. This cell population contained Muse cells at rate of 0.3%. Moreover, UCB-MSCs could induce the tube formation of human umbilical vein endothelial cells and inhibit more than 50% of SK-MEL cell growth. CONCLUSIONS: UCB-MSCs could be high-yield isolated and expanded under serum- and xeno-free conditions by using the StemMACS™ MSC Expansion Media kit. Autologous serum coating and plasma supplement enhanced cell proliferation. These UCB-MSCs had effected the tube formation process and an anti-cancer impact.

Differential Wound Healing Capacity of Mesenchymal Stem Cell-Derived Exosomes Originated From Bone Marrow, Adipose Tissue and Umbilical Cord Under Serum- and Xeno-Free Condition.

Exosomes are nano-scale and closed membrane vesicles which are promising for therapeutic applications due to exosome-enclosed therapeutic molecules such as DNA, small RNAs, proteins and lipids. Recently, it has been demonstrated that mesenchymal stem cell (MSC)-derived exosomes have capacity to regulate many biological events associated with wound healing process, such as cell proliferation, cell migration and blood vessel formation. This study investigated the regenerative potentials for cutaneous tissue, in regard to growth factors associated with wound healing and skin cell proliferation and migration, by exosomes released from primary MSCs originated from bone marrow (BM), adipose tissue (AD), and umbilical cord (UC) under serum- and xeno-free condition. We found crucial wound healing-mediated growth factors, such as vascular endothelial growth factor A (VEGF-A), fibroblast growth factor 2 (FGF-2), hepatocyte growth factor (HGF), and platelet-derived growth factor BB (PDGF-BB) in exosomes derived from all three MSC sources. However, expression levels of these growth factors in exosomes were influenced by MSC origins, especially transforming growth factor beta (TGF-ß) was only detected in UCMSC-derived exosomes. All exosomes released by three MSCs sources induced keratinocyte and fibroblast proliferation and migration; and, the induction of cell migration is a dependent manner with the higher dose of exosomes was used (20 µg), the faster migration rate was observed. Additionally, the influences of exosomes on cell proliferation and migration was associated with exosome origins and also target cells of exosomes that the greatest induction of primary dermal fibroblasts belongs to BMMSC-derived exosomes and keratinocytes belongs to UCMSC-derived exosomes. Data from this study indicated that BMMSCs and UCMSCs under clinical condition secreted exosomes are promising to develop into therapeutic products for wound healing treatment.

Induction of Antitumor Immunity by Exosomes Isolated from Cryopreserved Cord Blood Monocyte-Derived Dendritic Cells.

(1) Background: Dendritic cell (DC) vaccination has shown outstanding achievements in cancer treatment, although it still has some adverse side effects. Vaccination with DC-derived exosomes has been thought to overcome the side effects of the parental DCs. (2) Method: We performed the experiments to check the ability of cryopreserved umbilical cord blood mononuclear cell-derived DCs (cryo CBMDCs) and their exosomes to prime allogeneic T cell proliferation and allogeneic peripheral blood mononuclear cell (alloPBMCs) cytotoxicity against A549 lung cancer cells. (3) Results: We found that both lung tumor cell lysate-pulsed DCs and their exosomes could induce allogeneic T cell proliferation. Moreover, alloPBMCs primed with tumor cell lysate-pulsed DCs and their exosomes have a greater cytotoxic activity against A549 cells compared to unprimed cells and cells primed with unpulsed DCs and their exosomes. (4) Conclusion: Tumor cell lysate-pulsed DCs and their exosomes should be considered to develop into a novel immunotherapeutic strategy-e.g., vaccines-for patients with lung cancer. Our results also suggested that cryo umbilical cord blood mononuclear cells source, which is a readily and available source, is effective for generation of allogeneic DCs and their exosomes will be material for vaccinating against cancer.

In Vitro Characterization of Derrone as an Aurora Kinase Inhibitor.

Among mitotic kinases, Aurora kinases are the most widely studied, since their expression is restricted to mitosis. They play a key role in chromosome segregation and cell polyploidy. Aurora kinases are important therapeutic targets, and several research groups have directed their efforts toward the identification of kinase inhibitors. The aim of this study is to screen and characterize Aurora kinase inhibitors from natural substances extracted from plants that are used in the Vietnamese pharmacopoeia. We have characterized in vitro Derrone, extracted from Erythrina orientalis L. MURR, as a novel Aurora kinase inhibitor. This compound exhibited an ability to inhibit the phosphorylation of histone H3 at ser10 both in kinase assay and at the cellular level. The compound was more effective against Aurora kinase B, with a lower IC50 value as compared to Aurora A. Moreover, it impaired the mitotic spindle checkpoint and led to endoreduplication in cancer cells, a phenomenon caused by an Aurora B inhibitor. Interestingly, using the xCelligence system and real-time cell analysis (RTCA) software, we set up a comparison of cell proliferation profiles between cancer cells treated with Derrone and VX680-a well-known Aurora kinase inhibitor-and we found that these profiles exhibited considerable similarity in cell morphology, growth, and death. Additionally, Derrone significantly inhibited the formation and growth of MCF7 tumor spheroids.