Isolation and characterization of mesenchymal stem cells derived from fetal bovine liver.

Bovine liver-derived mesenchymal stem cells (bLMSCs) were isolated from the liver tissue of 4-6 months old fetal calf, and then characterized by immunofluorescence and RT-PCR. We found that primary bLMSCs could be subcultured to 44 passages, the total culture time in vitro was 192 days. The results of surface antigen detection showed that bBMSCs expressed CD29, CD44, CD73, CD90, CD106 and CD166 but not expressed endothelial cells and hematopoietic cells specific marker CD34, CD45 and BLA-DR. The results of growth kinetics, colony-forming cell assay and cell cycle analysis indicated that the fetal bovine LMSCs had good proliferation ability in vitro. The cells from passages 7 were successfully induced to differentiate into osteoblasts, adipocytes and chondrocytes. The results indicate the potential for multi-lineage differentiation of bLMSCs that may represent an ideal candidate for cellular transplantation therapy.