Unravelling Stem Cell Heterogeneity

Human mesenchymal stem/stromal cells (MSCs) are found in adult tissues such as bone marrow and are able to differentiate into bone, cartilage and fat tissues. There is intense interest in determining how MSCs may be used in future cell-based therapies, including gene therapy and tissue engineering, and as in vitro models for fundamental research and drug discovery. However, little is known about MSC identity and research is often performed on heterogeneous mixtures of different MSC sub-populations. Using a process of telomerase-based immortalisation and cell cloning, we have generated several different MSC lines that represent different “types” of MSCs. This project will examine the differentiation characteristics of these MSC lines to determine how they reflect MSC sub-populations in vivo.