LNGFR- and Thy-1-based prospective isolation of human mesenchymal stem cells reveals functionally distinct subpopulations.

Human multipotent mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs), isolated based on their adherence to plastic, show poor growth and differentiation and frequently contain contaminating cells, which limits to clarify their own characteristics. In this study, the identification of two cell surface markers, LNGFR and Thy-1, allowed the prospective isolation of highly purified clonogenic human MSCs. Furthermore, single cell sorting assays followed by in vitro expansion revealed three distinct MSC subpopulations: rapidly-, moderately- and slowly proliferating MSC clones (RPCs, MPCs and SPCs, respectively). While RPCs exhibited robust multilineage differentiation and self-renewal potency, MPCs and SPCs contained a majority of senescent cells and exhibited frequent genome errors. Single cell sorting assays followed by in vitro expansion revealed three distinct MSC subpopulations: rapidly-, moderately- and slowly proliferating MSC clones (RPCs, MPCs and SPCs, respectively). Sample: RPC, MPC and SPC (n=3).