We use cookies to understand how you use our site and to improve your experience. This includes personalizing content and advertising. To learn more, click here. By continuing to use our site, you accept our use of cookies. Cookie Policy.

Features Partner Sites Information LinkXpress
Sign In
Advertise with Us
LGC Clinical Diagnostics

Download Mobile App




Events

09 Apr 2024 - 12 Apr 2024
15 Apr 2024 - 17 Apr 2024
23 Apr 2024 - 26 Apr 2024

Novel Method Creates Megakaryocytes From Stem Cells For Transfusion

By LabMedica International staff writers
Posted on 28 Apr 2016
Print article
Image: The Axiovert 40 fluorescent microscope (Photo courtesy of Zeiss).
Image: The Axiovert 40 fluorescent microscope (Photo courtesy of Zeiss).
The production of megakaryocytes (MKs), the precursors of blood platelet, from human pluripotent stem cells (hPSCs) offers exciting clinical opportunities for transfusion medicine. Up to four components can be derived from donated blood: red cells, white cells, plasma and platelets.

Each component serves a different medical need, allowing several patients to benefit from a single unit of donation. Platelet transfusions are given to patients with life-threatening bleeding due to injury or surgery. They may also be given to patients having treatments for cancer or leukemia, or with blood disorders where they cannot make enough platelets of their own.

A large team of scientists led by those at the University of Cambridge and NHS Blood and Transplant (Cambridge, UK) developed an original approach for the large-scale generation of MKs in chemically defined conditions using a forward programming strategy relying on the concurrent exogenous expression of three transcription factors: globin transcription factor 1(GATA1,) Friend leukemia integration 1 transcription factor (FLI1) and T-Cell Acute Lymphocytic Leukemia 1 (TAL1).

A multiplicity of methodologies were used that included human pluripotent stem cell (hPSC) culture, selecting transcription factor candidates, transcription factor cloning using recombinant lentiviral vectors, human pluripotent stem cell transduction, megakaryocyte forward programming and flow cytometry analyses were performed on a CyAn ADP analyzer (Beckman Coulter, Brea, CA, USA). Megakaryocyte colony forming assay, and immunofluorescence analysis and the latter were visualized on an Axiovert 40 fluorescent microscope (Zeiss, Cambridge, UK).

The forward programmed MKs proliferated and differentiated in culture for several months with MK purity over 90% reaching up to 2 × 105 mature MKs per input hPSC. Functional platelets are generated throughout the culture allowing the prospective collection of several transfusion units from as few as one million starting hPSCs. The high cell purity and yield achieved by MK forward programming, combined with efficient cryopreservation and good manufacturing practice (GMP)-compatible culture, make this approach eminently suitable to both in vitro production of platelets for transfusion.

The authors noted that critically, the forward programmed MKs (fopMKs) matured into platelet-producing cells that could be cryopreserved, maintained and amplified in vitro for over 90 days showing an average yield of 200,000 MKs per input hPSC. The study was published on April 7, 2016, in the journal Nature Communications.

Related Links:
University of Cambridge and NHS Blood and Transplant
Beckman Coulter
Zeiss

Platinum Member
COVID-19 Rapid Test
OSOM COVID-19 Antigen Rapid Test
HLX
Complement 3 (C3) Test
GPP-100 C3 Kit
New
Gold Member
Systemic Autoimmune Testing Assay
BioPlex 2200 ANA Screen with MDSS

Print article

Channels

Clinical Chemistry

view channel
Image: Reaching speeds up to 6,000 RPM, this centrifuge forms the basis for a new type of inexpensive, POC biomedical test (Photo courtesy of Duke University)

POC Biomedical Test Spins Water Droplet Using Sound Waves for Cancer Detection

Exosomes, tiny cellular bioparticles carrying a specific set of proteins, lipids, and genetic materials, play a crucial role in cell communication and hold promise for non-invasive diagnostics.... Read more

Molecular Diagnostics

view channel
Image: MOF materials efficiently enrich cfDNA and cfRNA in blood through simple operational process (Photo courtesy of Science China Press)

Blood Circulating Nucleic Acid Enrichment Technique Enables Non-Invasive Liver Cancer Diagnosis

The ability to diagnose diseases early can significantly enhance the effectiveness of clinical treatments and improve survival rates. One promising approach for non-invasive early diagnosis is the use... Read more

Pathology

view channel
Image: The OvaCis Rapid Test discriminates benign from malignant epithelial ovarian cysts (Photo courtesy of INEX)

Intra-Operative POC Device Distinguishes Between Benign and Malignant Ovarian Cysts within 15 Minutes

Ovarian cysts represent a significant health issue for women globally, with up to 10% experiencing this condition at some point in their lives. These cysts form when fluid collects within a thin membrane... Read more
Copyright © 2000-2024 Globetech Media. All rights reserved.