ISSCR standards for the use of human stem cells in basic research.

The laboratory culture of human stem cells seeks to capture a cellular state as an in vitro surrogate of a biological system. For the results and outputs from this research to be accurate, meaningful, and durable, standards that ensure reproducibility and reliability of the data should be applied. Although such standards have been previously proposed for repositories and distribution centers, no widely accepted best practices exist for laboratory research with human pluripotent and tissue stem cells. To fill that void, the International Society for Stem Cell Research has developed a set of recommendations, including reporting criteria, for scientists in basic research laboratories. These criteria are designed to be technically and financially feasible and, when implemented, enhance the reproducibility and rigor of stem cell research.

Stem cell sources and characterization in the development of cell-based products for treating retinal disease: An NEI Town Hall report.

National Eye Institute recently issued a new Strategic Plan outlining priority research areas for the next 5 years. Starting cell source for deriving stem cell lines is as an area with gaps and opportunities for making progress in regenerative medicine, a key area of emphasis within the NEI Strategic Plan. There is a critical need to understand how starting cell source affects the cell therapy product and what specific manufacturing capabilities and quality control standards are required for autologous vs allogeneic stem cell sources. With the goal of addressing some of these questions, in discussion with the community-at-large, NEI hosted a Town Hall at the Association for Research in Vision and Ophthalmology annual meeting in May 2022. This session leveraged recent clinical advances in autologous and allogeneic RPE replacement strategies to develop guidance for upcoming cell therapies for photoreceptors, retinal ganglion cells, and other ocular cell types. Our focus on stem cell-based therapies for RPE underscores the relatively advanced stage of RPE cell therapies to patients with several ongoing clinical trials. Thus, this workshop encouraged lessons learned from the RPE field to help accelerate progress in developing stem cell-based therapies in other ocular tissues. This report provides a synthesis of the key points discussed at the Town Hall and highlights needs and opportunities in ocular regenerative medicine.

Preparation of Mouse Embryonic Fibroblasts as Feeders for iPSC Generation and Maintenance.

Mouse embryonic fibroblasts (MEFs) can be used in co-culture to support generation of induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) and the normal growth and proliferation of human pluripotent stem cells (hPSCs). Here, we describe the necessary steps to derive, expand, harvest, inactivate, plate, and use MEFs as feeders for iPSC generation and maintenance.

20 Years of Human Pluripotent Stem Cell Research: It All Started with Five Lines.

November 2018 marks the 20th anniversary of the seminal human embryonic stem cell (hESC) publication, which reported the initial hESC derivations and launched the field of human pluripotent stem cell research. To commemorate this significant milestone, we reflect on the scientific, economic, and clinically relevant impact of this groundbreaking achievement.

Quality control guidelines for clinical-grade human induced pluripotent stem cell lines.

Use of clinical-grade human induced pluripotent stem cell (iPSC) lines as a starting material for the generation of cellular therapeutics requires demonstration of comparability of lines derived from different individuals and in different facilities. This requires agreement on the critical quality attributes of such lines and the assays that should be used. Working from established recommendations and guidance from the International Stem Cell Banking Initiative for human embryonic stem cell banking, and concentrating on those issues more relevant to iPSCs, a series of consensus workshops has made initial recommendations on the minimum dataset required to consider an iPSC line of clinical grade, which are outlined in this report. Continued evolution of this field will likely lead to revision of these guidelines on a regular basis.

Culture, Adaptation, and Expansion of Pluripotent Stem Cells.

The ability of human pluripotent stem cells (hPSCs) to proliferate indefinitely in culture while maintaining their pluripotent properties makes them a powerful tool for use in research, and provides tremendous potential for diagnostic testing, and therapeutic application. Success in these areas, however, is dependent on the ability to effectively expand them in long-term culture while preserving their distinct nature. Contained in this chapter are detailed protocols for the feeder-independent culture and expansion of hPSCs using mTeSR1 medium and Matrigel matrix, and guidelines for the successful transfer of those cells to alternative platforms. These protocols have been used widely by laboratories around the world to successfully expand hPSCs for long-term culture while maintaining their undifferentiated, pluripotent state.

Cryobanking Pluripotent Stem Cells.

Cryobanking human pluripotent stem cells (hPSCs), be they human embryonic (hESCs) or induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs), is essential for their use in research and cell-based therapeutics. Working and master cell banks can be generated with a desired level of quality assurance applied during cell freezing and storage. Conventional vitrification has evolved to more advanced control rate freezing, culminating in a myriad of published protocols with variable proficiencies and clinical efficacies. Notwithstanding, standardized and reliable protocols are necessary for basic science through to applied research and clinical product development. This chapter details several methods for hPSC cryopreservation, suitable for routine application, high-quality research, and adaptable for clinical compliance.

Comparison of defined culture systems for feeder cell free propagation of human embryonic stem cells.

There are many reports of defined culture systems for the propagation of human embryonic stem cells in the absence of feeder cell support, but no previous study has undertaken a multi-laboratory comparison of these diverse methodologies. In this study, five separate laboratories, each with experience in human embryonic stem cell culture, used a panel of ten embryonic stem cell lines (including WA09 as an index cell line common to all laboratories) to assess eight cell culture methods, with propagation in the presence of Knockout Serum Replacer, FGF-2, and mouse embryonic fibroblast feeder cell layers serving as a positive control. The cultures were assessed for up to ten passages for attachment, death, and differentiated morphology by phase contrast microscopy, for growth by serial cell counts, and for maintenance of stem cell surface marker expression by flow cytometry. Of the eight culture systems, only the control and those based on two commercial media, mTeSR1 and STEMPRO, supported maintenance of most cell lines for ten passages. Cultures grown in the remaining media failed before this point due to lack of attachment, cell death, or overt cell differentiation. Possible explanations for relative success of the commercial formulations in this study, and the lack of success with other formulations from academic groups compared to previously published results, include: the complex combination of growth factors present in the commercial preparations; improved development, manufacture, and quality control in the commercial products; differences in epigenetic adaptation to culture in vitro between different ES cell lines grown in different laboratories.

International banking: checks, deposits, and withdrawals.

In the 10 years that the technology to produce human embryonic stem cell lines has been available, hundreds of lines have been derived in numerous global locations. These cell lines are being used by researchers across diverse scientific fields to investigate the basic biology, clinical potential, and pharmaceutical applications of these cells and their progeny. In this fast-moving and rapidly growing field, how can we ensure that data generated by different laboratories using the same cell lines are comparable, reproducible, and consistent? One suggestion would be to ensure the quality of the "seed stock" material received and used by researchers. Because a number of laboratories worldwide provide stem cell lines to the scientific community, it seems logical to explore the harmonization of practices between distributors to establish cohesive standards and aid the global movement of stem cell lines to the research community. In the future, when these cells arrive in the clinic for therapeutic use, this consensus of "best practice" should ensure the consistency and facilitate the dissemination of these valuable materials.

Derivation of human embryonic stem cells in defined conditions.

We have previously reported that high concentrations of basic fibroblast growth factor (bFGF) support feeder-independent growth of human embryonic stem (ES) cells, but those conditions included poorly defined serum and matrix components. Here we report feeder-independent human ES cell culture that includes protein components solely derived from recombinant sources or purified from human material. We describe the derivation of two new human ES cell lines in these defined culture conditions.

Basic fibroblast growth factor support of human embryonic stem cell self-renewal.

Human embryonic stem (ES) cells have most commonly been cultured in the presence of basic fibroblast growth factor (FGF2) either on fibroblast feeder layers or in fibroblast-conditioned medium. It has recently been reported that elevated concentrations of FGF2 permit the culture of human ES cells in the absence of fibroblasts or fibroblast-conditioned medium. Herein we compare the ability of unconditioned medium (UM) supplemented with 4, 24, 40, 80, 100, and 250 ng/ml FGF2 to sustain low-density human ES cell cultures through multiple passages. In these stringent culture conditions, 4, 24, and 40 ng/ml FGF2 failed to sustain human ES cells through three passages, but 100 ng/ml sustained human ES cells with an effectiveness comparable to conditioned medium (CM). Two human ES cell lines (H1 and H9) were maintained for up to 164 population doublings (7 and 4 months) in UM supplemented with 100 ng/ml FGF2. After prolonged culture, the cells formed teratomas when injected into severe combined immunodeficient beige mice and expressed markers characteristic of undifferentiated human ES cells. We also demonstrate that FGF2 is degraded more rapidly in UM than in CM, partly explaining the need for higher concentrations of FGF2 in UM. These results further facilitate the large-scale, routine culture of human ES cells and suggest that fibroblasts and fibro-blast-conditioned medium sustain human ES cells in part by stabilizing FGF signaling above a critical threshold.