Isolation and identification of a mesenchymal stem/stromal cell-like population from pediatric urethral tissue

Mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) are important seed cells for cell therapy and tissue engineering because of their multidirectional differentiation potential, high proliferative capacity, low immunogenicity, and immunomodulatory ability. In this study, we successfully isolated and cultured a population of mesenchymal stem-like cells from pediatric urethra (PU-MSLCs). The cells had a spindle-shaped fibroblast-like morphology, similar to MSCs derived from other tissues. The PU-MSLCs highly expressed MSC surface markers CD29, CD73, CD90, and CD105 but were negative for leukocyte common antigen CD45, and MHC class II-encoded molecule HLA-DR. After in vitro induction, the PU-MSLCs had the potential to differentiate into adipocytes, osteocytes, and chondrocytes. The PU-MSLCs maintained a normal karyotype and showed no tumorigenicity during long-term cultivation. We thus demonstrated that the mesenchymal stem/stromal cell-like population obtained from pediatric urethra tissue is capable of self-renewal and multidirectional differentiation, has promising application prospects for cell therapy and tissue engineering, and is expected to contribute to urethral tissue reconstruction.