Aim: To expand our previous findings by increasing the number of patients in a study characterizing medicinal signaling cells (MSC) of stromal vascular fraction from lipoaspirate (SVF-LA) and from microfragmented lipoaspirate (SVF-MLA) applied for the treatment of osteoarthritis (OA).
Methods: Twenty OA patients, including 8 new patients, acquiring autologous microfragmented adipose tissue were enrolled. In-parallel immunophenotyping of SVF-LA and SVF-MLA was performed. The samples were incubated in a DuraClone SC prototype tube targeting the CD31, CD34, CD45, CD73, CD90, CD105, and CD146 surface markers, stained with the DRAQ7 cell nuclear dye and Live/Dead Yellow Fixable Stain, and analyzed by flow cytometry.
Results: The population phenotypes in SVF-LA and SVF-MLA samples included CD31+CD34+CD73±CD90±CD105±CD146± endothelial progenitors (EP), CD31+CD34-CD73±CD90±CD105-CD146± mature endothelial cells, CD31-CD34-CD73±CD90+CD105-CD146+ pericytes, CD31-CD34+CD73±CD90+CD105-CD146+ transitional pericytes, and CD31-CD34+CD73highCD90+CD105-CD146- supra-adventitial-adipose stromal cells. Compared with the autologous SVF-LA samples, the prevailing cell type in SVF-MLA were EP, which outnumbered leukocytes and supra-adventitial-adipose stromal cells (SA-ASC). The ratio of progenitor cells in SVF-MLA samples differed between female and male patients, showing a higher EP-pericyte and pericyte-SA-ASC ratio in men.
Conclusion: Our results, hallmarked by EP-enriched anti-inflammatory features and indicating a possible sex-specific impact, contribute to defining the cellular composition of the clinically applied MSC serving as a regenerative cell therapy in OA.