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Review
. 2017:2017:1919845.
doi: 10.1155/2017/1919845. Epub 2017 Mar 12.

Ligament-Derived Stem Cells: Identification, Characterisation, and Therapeutic Application

Katie Joanna Lee  1 , Peter David Clegg  2 , Eithne Josephine Comerford  3 , Elizabeth Gail Canty-Laird  4
Affiliations
Review

Ligament-Derived Stem Cells: Identification, Characterisation, and Therapeutic Application

Katie Joanna Lee et al. Stem Cells Int. 2017.

Abstract

Ligament is prone to injury and degeneration and has poor healing potential and, with currently ineffective treatment strategies, stem cell therapies may provide an exciting new treatment option. Ligament-derived stem cell (LDSC) populations have been isolated from a number of different ligament types with the majority of studies focussing on periodontal ligament. To date, only a few studies have investigated LDSC populations in other types of ligament, for example, intra-articular ligaments; however, this now appears to be a developing field. This literature review aims to summarise the current information on nondental LDSCs including in vitro characteristics of LDSCs and their therapeutic potential. The stem cell niche has been shown to be vital for stem cell survival and function in a number of different physiological systems; therefore, the LDSC niche may have an impact on LDSC phenotype. The role of the LDSC niche on LDSC viability and function will be discussed as well as the therapeutic potential of LDSC niche modulation.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare that there are no competing interests regarding the publication of this paper.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Different morphologies and clonogenic ability of LDSCs isolated from canine cranial cruciate ligament. (a)-(b) show sparse colonies with a fibroblastic cell morphology. (c)-(d) show dense colonies with a rounded, cobblestone cell morphology. Bars = 100 μm.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Trilineage differentiation potential of canine cranial cruciate LDSCs. Images are shown for LDSCs after induction of osteogenic, adipogenic, and chondrogenic differentiation after appropriate staining (a)–(e). Cells subjected to osteogenic differentiation media were stained for both calcium deposits using alizarin red stain (a) and alkaline phosphatase activity (b). Cells subjected to adipogenic differentiation media were stained for oil droplet formation using oil red O (c), and cell pellets exposed to chondrogenic differentiation media, for GAG formation using alcian blue (d) and safranin O (e). Negative control cells were incubated in control media and stained as above (f)–(j). Bars = 100 μm.
Figure 3
Figure 3
The potential factors comprising the ligament stem cell niche.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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