Abstract
MSCs (mesenchymal stem cells) are bone marrow-derived cells capable of replication and differentiation in-vitro into several tissues including bone, cartilage, stroma, fat, muscle and tendon. MSCs can be isolated by relatively simple procedures and then expanded without losing the ability to differentiate into multiple lineages. As such, these cells have immense clinical potential in regenerative medicine and in orthopaedics for repair or replacement of damaged tissues. In this work we investigated the interaction between magnetic carbon nanotubes (CNTs) and MSCs and their ability to guide these cells injected intravenously in living mice by using an external magnetic field. CNTs did not affect cell viability and their ability to differentiate. Both the CNTs and the magnetic field did not alter cell growth rate, phenotype and cytoskeletal conformation. CNTs, when exposed to magnetic fields, are able to shepherd MSCs towards the magnetic source in vitro. Moreover, the application of a magnetic field alters the biodistribution of CNT-labelled MSCs after intravenous injection into rats. We demonstrated that CNTs hold the potential for use as nano-devices to improve therapeutic protocols for transplantation and homing of stem cells in vivo. This could pave the way for the development of new strategies for manipulation/guidance of MSCs in regenerative medicine and cell transplantation for the treatment of many orthopaedic diseases.
