Rho-associated protein kinases play an important role in the differentiation of rat adipose-derived stromal cells into cardiomyocytes in vitro.

Evidence from laboratory and animal studies provides groundwork for understanding mechanisms and potential before human studies continue.

• Level A · Stronger Clinical Evidence
• Level B · Emerging clinical evidence with positive signals
• Level C · Early human research exploring benefits
• Level D · Scientific groundwork from lab and animal studies
• Emerging · Emerging topic under active research

Abstract (original English)

Adipose-derived stromal cells (ADSCs) represent a readily available abundant supply of mesenchymal stem cells and have the ability to differentiate into cardiomyocytes in mice and human, making ADSCs a promising source of cardiomyocytes for transplantation. However, there has been no report of differentiation of rat ADSCs into cardiomyocytes. In addition, signaling pathways in the differentiation process from ADSCs to cardiomyocytes are unknown. In this study, we first demonstrated that rat ADSCs spontaneously differentiated into cardiomyocytes in vitro, when cultured on a complete medium formulation MethoCult GF M3534. These differentiated cells possessed cardiomyocyte phenotype and expressed cardiac markers. Moreover, these cells showed open excitation-contracting coupling and Ca2+ transient and contracted spontaneously. The role of Rho-associated protein kinases (ROCKs) in the differentiation process was then studied by using ROCK-specific inhibitor Y-27632 and ROCK siRNAs. These agents changed the arrangement of cytoskeleton and diminished appearance of cardiomyocyte phenotype, accompanied by inhibition of c-Jun N-terminal kinase (JNK) phosphorylation and promotion of Akt phosphorylation. Collectively, this is the first study to demonstrate that rat ADSCs could spontaneously differentiate into cardiomyocytes in vitro and ROCKs play an important role in the differentiation o

Evidence level

Evidence from laboratory and animal studies provides groundwork for understanding mechanisms and potential before human studies continue.

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