THE METHOD OF OBTAINING PIGMENTED CELLS IN VITRO BY THE DIFFERENTIATION OF HUMAN INDUCED PLURIPOTENT STEM CELLS

Abstract

The invention discloses the method of differentiating human induced Pluripotent Stem cells (iPS cells) to obtain pigmented cells which produce melanin. The protocol described is much more efficient than any other method used to obtain melanin in vitro.

Claims

1. The method of obtaining pigmented cells in vitro by differentiating human induced pluripotent stem cells which includes four steps: a) the suspension of detached confluent IFS cells is plated on a non-adherent cell culture dish preventing cell adhesion in the medium for iPS cells without bFGF with inhibitor Y27632 where the density is 2-2.510.sup.4 cells/cm2 and then cultured, preferably for 4 days until embryoid bodies (EB) are formed, b) the embryoid bodies (EB) obtained in stage a) are harvested and seeded on an adherent dish and then cultured in the medium for iMEF cells, preferably for 18 hours, c) progenitors are selected in medium N1 consisting of supplement N2 (diluted 1), fibronectin in the concentration of 250 ng/ml, a solution of antibiotics including penicillin and streptomycin (P/S) in the concentration of 100 U/ml/100 g/ml, diluted in medium DMEM/F12, the progenitors are selected for 10 days and dead cells are periodically eliminated, d) the obtained progenitor cells are dissociated and placed in the density of 0.5-210.sup.5/cm.sup.2 onto dishes covered with laminin and polyornithine and expanded for 7 days in medium N2 consisting of supplement N2, (diluted 1), laminin in the concentration of 1 mg/ml, bFGF in the concentration 20 g/ml, FGF8 in the concentration of 100 ng/ml and P/S in the concentration of 100 U/ml/100 g/ml, diluted in medium DMEM/F12. The cells obtained may be stored frozen in medium N2 with 10% of DMSO in the density of 2 million cells/ml before they are used in the next step, e) cells are finally differentiated for 7-16 days by culturing them in medium N3 consisting of supplement N2, diluted (1), laminin in the concentration of 1 mg/ml, dibutyryl-cAMP in the concentration of 0.5 mM, ascorbic acid in the concentration of 200 M and P/S in the concentration of 100 U/ml/100 g/ml, diluted in medium DMEM/F12, in order to obtain human cells pigmented with melanin.

2. The method according to the claim 1 characterized in that media N1, N2 and N3 contain the indicated components only.

3. The use of cells obtained according to the method defined in claims 1-2 to obtain melanin.

Description

EXAMPLE 1

The Method of Obtaining Human Cells Extensively Pigmented with Melanin From Human Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells

[0014] The cells used were confluent piPS cells (protein-iPS cells) purchased from System Bioscience (cat no.SC801A-1, SC802A-1) (Kim et al. 2009) or the cell lines derived at the Department of Transplantation of the Jagiellonian University Medical College by reprogramming the somatic cells from donors.

[0015] In the first step, the confluent iPS cells (FIG. 1A) cultured on the feeder layer made of iMEF cells were harvested using Accutase and plated as a suspension of single cells on a non-adherent cell culture dish in the medium for iPS cells without bFGF with inhibitor Y27632 in the density of 2-2.510.sup.4/cm.sup.2. Next, iPS cells were cultured in the suspension for 4 days until embryoid cells (EB) were formed (FIG. 1B).

[0016] The composition of the medium for iPS cells:

TABLE-US-00001 Component Concentration KSR 20% (ThermoFisher Scientific) -Mercaptoethanol 0.1 mM (Sigma-Aldrich) Non-essential Amino Acids 1X (ThermoFisher Scientific) Penicillin/ 100 U/ml/100 g/ml Streptomycin (P/S) (ThermoFisher Scientific) bFGF 10 ng/ml (ThermoFisher Scientific) DMEM/F12 (ThermoFisher Scientific)

[0017] In the next step, the embryoid cells were harvested, centrifuged (300 rpm, 5 minutes) and seeded on an adherent dish with the same surface as the non-adherent dish in the medium for iMEF cells.

[0018] The composition of the medium for iMEF cells:

TABLE-US-00002 Component Concentration Foetal Bovine Serum (EurX) 10% L-glutamine 2 mM (ThermoFisher Scientific) P/S 100 U/ml/100 g/ml DMEM 4.5 g/l (Lonza)

[0019] After about 18 hours, the selection of progenitors (FIG. 1C) was initiated by changing the medium to medium N1 with the following composition:

TABLE-US-00003 Component Concentration Supplement N2 1x (ThermoFisher Scientific) Fibronectin 250 ng/ml (ThermoFisher Scientific) P/S 100 U/ml/100 g/ml DMEM/F12 (ThermoFisher Scientific)

[0020] The selection in serum-free media was carried out for 10 days by removing dead cells and providing the fresh medium N1 every second day. Supplement N2 provided by Life Technologies was used. It contains human insulin (0.1 mg/ml), holo-Transferrin (5 g/ml), progesterone (20 M), putrescine (0.1 mM), sodium selenite (30 nM) (final concentration, after dilution in the medium).

[0021] The next step was the expansion of selected progenitors (FIG. 1D). The cells were dissociated into single cells using trypsin and plated in the density of 0.5-210.sup.5/cm.sup.2 onto dishes covered with laminin and poly-ornithine.

[0022] Cell expansion was carried out for 7 days in medium N2 with the following composition:

TABLE-US-00004 Component Concentration N2 supplement 1x Laminin 1 mg/ml (ThermoFisher Scientific) bFGF 20 g/ml FGF8 100 ng/ml (ThermoFisher Scientific) P/S 100 U/ml/100 g/ml DMEM/F12

[0023] Progenitors were frozen in medium N2 with 10% of DMSO in the density of 210.sup.6 cells/ml. After the expansion was completed, the cells were terminally differentiated by changing the medium from N2 to N3. The composition of medium N3 can be found in the table below:

TABLE-US-00005 Component Concentration N2 supplement 1x Laminin 1 mg/ml Dibutyryl cAMP 0.5 mM (Sigma-Aldrich) Ascorbic acid 200 M (Sigma-Aldrich) P/S 100 U/ml/100 g/ml DMEM/F12

[0024] As a result of the differentiation method described extensively pigmented cells (FIG. 1E-I) were obtained in a highly repeatable manner. The efficiency of the differentiation process was always similar and made it possible to obtain a large number (>310.sup.6) of highly pigmented cells.

[0025] FIG. 1 presents the results of the consecutive stages of iPS cell differentiation to obtain pigmented cells. ApiPS cells cultured on the feeder layer. Bmulti-cellullar embryoid bodies (EB) in a suspension. Cselected NPC cells subjected to expansion (D). In the final stage of differentiation, the cells acquired a black pigmentation (E-I).

EXAMPLE 2

The Characteristics of the Cells Obtained and the Pigment Isolated From Them

[0026] The pigment obtained was unambiguously identified as melanin using electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) (FIG. 2A) and Fontana-Masson staining (FIG. 2B). The obtained pigmented cells were characterised with respect to their gene expression using a RT-PCR reaction (FIG. 3) and immunocytochemical staining (ICC) (FIG. 4).

[0027] FIG. 3 shows the expression of markers at the RNA level. Apigmented cells which, unlike iPS cells, express melanocyte markers (MITF-M, TRP1, TYR) Bin the next steps of cell differentiation (A-F) the expression of embryoid markers is reduced (OCT-4, NANOG, TERT) and the expression of neuroectodermal markers (NURR1, TUJ-1, TH) grows. TERTtelomerase, TUJ-1III-tubulin, THtyrosine hydroxylase NURR1nuclear-receptor related protein, the constitutive gene GAPDH was used as a positive control of the PCR reaction.

[0028] FIG. 4 shows the expression of markers at the level of protein. The cells obtained express melanocyte markersTRP1 and MITF (A and B). In the heterogenic population of cells obtained, there are also dopaminergic neurons which express TUJ-1 and TH (C and D). The subcellular location of melanin was defined using transmission electron microscopy (TEM) (FIG. 5).

[0029] FIG. 5 shows the subcellular location of melanin in the cells obtained. Melanin is organised in organelles resembling the consecutive stages of melanosome development (I-IV in A). The organelles are surrounded with a dual cellular membrane (B).

[0030] The results obtained make it possible to confirm unambiguously that the pigment obtained is melanin. The differentiated pigmented cells resemble melanocytes in many aspects (marker expression, gene expression profile, the presence of membranous intracellular organelles filled with the pigment), but the number of pigmented cells and the level of pigmentation for the cells obtained is unexpectedly high as compared with other available technologies. The method described can be employed to provide very large numbers of extensively pigmented cells that may be used for the isolation of pure, non-degraded melanin in large amounts and at a relatively low cost.