Abstract

 Background and Objectives

 Umbilical cord is one of the major sources of mesenchymal stem cells. In this study, the differentiative potential of human umbilical vein mesenchymal stem cells into hepatocyte-like cells has been investigated by cellular uptake of indocyanine green.

 Materials and Methods

 Human umbilical vein mesenchymal stem cells ( UVMSCs) were incubated for 2 weeks in the medium containing hepatocyte growth factor they were also treated with the medium containing oncostatin M for another 2 weeks. The differentiated cells were analyzed by uptake of indocyanine green (ICG), immunofluorescence analysis, and periodic acid-Schiff (PAS) staining.

 Results

 The differentiating cells showed transition from bipolar fibroblast-like morphology to round or oval shape. Cellular uptake of ICG was detected in differentiated cells. Glycogen storage was determined by PAS staining in differentiated cells which were immunoreactive to albumin.

 Conclusions

 Based on these observations, we can conclude that UVMSCs are able to differentiate into hepatocyte-like cells in vitro and ICG-staining is a useful marker to identify differentiated hepatocytes from human umbilical vein mesenchymal stem cells.

 �

 Keywords : Cell Differentiation, Umbilical Veins, Mesenchymal Stem Cells, Hepatocytes, Indocyanine Green�