Kyoto University and the Japan Medical Research and Development Organization announced that they have confirmed functional recovery by inducing differentiation of tendon cells from human iPS cells and transplanting them into rats with Achilles tendon rupture.For the first time, a therapeutic method leading to cell therapy using human iPS cells has been developed.The results of this research are the research group of the Center for iPS Cell Research and Application (CiRA), Kyoto University (Researcher Daiki Nakajima (currently Harvard University), Associate Professor Makoto Ikeya), Graduate School of Medicine, Kyoto University, Tokyo Jiekai Medical University, and iPS Cell Research Institute, Kyoto University. Through joint research with the Research Foundation.
The tendons that connect bones and muscles are difficult to self-repair due to poor blood flow.Therefore, in the case of a serious injury such as an Achilles tendon rupture, tendon reconstruction surgery using another tissue of the body may be performed.However, the re-injury rate after surgery is relatively high, and muscle weakness occurs due to the collection of healthy sites, which often requires a long rehabilitation period.
So far, the research group has succeeded in inducing the differentiation of harden cells and tendon / ligament cells from human iPS cells in vitro, but used components derived from animals other than humans in the process of culturing the cells.This time, in order to apply it to human cell therapy in the future, we have developed a method for inducing differentiation under conditions that do not use animal-derived components.As a result, tendon cells were induced to differentiate from human iPS cells by mimicking the development of mesoderm, and the prepared Achilles tendon was transplanted into ruptured rats.
As a result, the transplanted tendon cells are engrafted, and the injured tendon is recovered at an early stage by secreting protein and enhancing the recovery ability (paracline effect), which is kinematic and biomechanical.・ It was confirmed histologically.
The method developed this time is expected to be utilized in regenerative medicine using human iPS cell-derived tendon cells and research on genetic diseases related to tendon cells.
Paper information:[Nature Communications] Grafting of iPS cell-derived tenocytes promotes motor function recovery after Achilles tendon rupture
