Potential of human bone marrow stromal cells to accelerate wound healing in vitro

The purpose of this pilot study was to compare proliferation, collagen synthesis, and growth factor production, which are important contributing factors for wound healing, of the bone marrow stromal cells (BSCs) with those of dermal fibroblasts in vitro. Cultured human BSCs and dermal fibroblasts from the same patients were seeded in 96-well culture plates. At 1, 3, and 5 days postincubating, cell proliferation, collagen synthesis, and secretion of basic fibroblast growth factor (bFGF), vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF), and transforming growth factor beta (TFG-beta) were compared. We did not observe great differences in cell proliferation and TFG-beta secretion. In contrast, the amount of collagen synthesis and the levels of the bFGF and the VEGF were much higher in the BSC group than the fibroblast group at each time interval (P < 0.05). Our results suggest that the BSCs may have superior potential to accelerate wound healing than the fibroblasts.