Shipping Temperature, Time and Media Effects on Equine Wharton's Jelly and Adipose Tissue Derived Mesenchymal Stromal Cells Characteristics.
Authors: Iacono Eleonora, Lanci Aliai, Gugole Penelope, Merlo Barbara
Journal: Animals : an open access journal from MDPI
Summary
# Editorial Summary Mesenchymal stromal cells (MSCs) derived from equine adipose tissue and umbilical cord Wharton's jelly are increasingly used therapeutically, but transport between laboratory and clinical site presents a significant logistical challenge that has received limited investigation. Iacono and colleagues examined how storage temperature (4°C versus room temperature), storage medium (plasma versus 0.9% saline), and duration (6, 48 and 24 hours) affected cell viability, proliferative capacity, differentiation potential and immunophenotypic markers in both cell sources. Whilst molecular characterisation and trilineage differentiation capacity remained stable across all conditions tested, the practical parameters differed substantially between sources: adipose-derived MSCs retained acceptable viability and adhesion potential for up to 24 hours in plasma, whereas Wharton's jelly-derived cells showed marked deterioration in both media and required use within 6 hours regardless of temperature. These findings have immediate clinical implications—practitioners should source adipose tissue-derived cells when longer transport times are unavoidable, reserve Wharton's jelly preparations for immediate on-site use, and prioritise plasma over saline as a transport medium for adipose cells, recognising that the inherent fragility of umbilical-derived cells may render them impractical for distributed clinical models.
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Practical Takeaways
- •When transporting equine MSCs back to clinic, plan for use within 6 hours if cells are from Wharton's jelly, but adipose-derived cells can tolerate up to 24 hours of transport
- •Use plasma as the storage solution for adipose tissue MSCs during shipping to maintain better viability and therapeutic potential
- •Wharton's jelly MSCs require rapid deployment and may not be practical for distant facilities due to their poor tolerance of storage conditions
Key Findings
- •Equine adipose tissue-derived MSCs remain usable after 24 hours of storage, while Wharton's jelly-derived MSCs must be used within 6 hours
- •Plasma solution provided better cell viability preservation for adipose tissue MSCs compared to 0.9% NaCl
- •Wharton's jelly MSCs showed reduced resistance to conservation with declining viability in both saline and plasma solutions
- •Molecular characterization and trilineage differentiation potential were not significantly affected by storage conditions tested (temperature, time, solution)