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Amniotic Fluid: A Source of Stem Cells for Therapeutic Use and Modeling of Human Genetic Diseases

  • Somaieh KazemnejadEmail author
  • Manijeh Khanmohammadi
  • Abolfazl Shirazi
  • Shaghayegh Arasteh
  • Sayeh Khanjani
  • Mehdi Aleahmad
Chapter
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Part of the Stem Cell Biology and Regenerative Medicine book series (STEMCELL)

Abstract

Nowadays, amniotic fluid (AF) has been introduced as a renewable stem cell source with easy procurement, availability, and without ethical issues associated with embryonic stem cells and adult stem cells like bone marrow. The immunomodulatory properties of amniotic fluid stem cells (AFSCs) along with capacity for long-term culturing, expansion, and cryopreservation make it suitable for potential applications in pharmaceutical screening, disease modeling, and cell-based therapies. Furthermore, there is compelling evidence about safety and functionality of AFSCs in treatment of different diseases in animal models. These features hold promise in clinical treatment of diseases by safe and accessible autologous cells in near future. On the other hand, AFSCs could represent a useful stem cell model for studying the molecular basis of prenatal diagnosed diseases since AFSCs demonstrate some pluripotent properties and are able to differentiate into different lineages. In this chapter, we describe the potential benefits and pitfalls of AFSCs in the regenerative medicine and modeling of human genetic diseases.

Keywords

Amniotic fluid Stem cells Regenerative medicine Genetic modeling 

Abbreviations

AF

Amniotic fluid

AFSCs

Amniotic fluid stem cells

AFSCs-ECs

Amniotic fluid stem cell-derived endothelial cells

ASCs

Adult stem cells

BMSCs

Bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells

BMP-4

Bone morphogenetic protein-4

ESCs

Embryonic stem cells

GDNF

Glia cell line-derived neurotrophic factor

GVHD

Graft versus host disease

HGFR

Hepatocyte growth factor receptor

iPSC

Induced pluripotent stem cells

ICAM-1

Intercellular adhesion molecule-1

MDSC

Muscle-derived stem cells

MSCs

Mesenchymal stem cells

NRVM

Neonatal rat ventricular myocytes

NCAM

Neural cell adhesion molecule

PGA

Polyglycolic acid

SSEA-1

Stage-specific embryonic antigens

SPCL

Starch-poly(ε-caprolactone)

TB4

Thymosin-beta-4

Tra-1-60

Tumor-rejection antigens-1-60

Tra-1-81

Tumor-rejection antigens-1-81

VEGF

Vascular endothelial growth factor

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Notes

Study Finding/Competing Interest

The authors indicate no potential conflict of interest.

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Copyright information

© Springer International Publishing Switzerland 2016

Authors and Affiliations

  • Somaieh Kazemnejad
    • 1
    Email author
  • Manijeh Khanmohammadi
    • 1
  • Abolfazl Shirazi
    • 1
  • Shaghayegh Arasteh
    • 1
  • Sayeh Khanjani
    • 1
  • Mehdi Aleahmad
    • 2
  1. 1.Reproductive Biotechnology Research CenterAvicenna Research Institute, ACECRTehranIran
  2. 2.Department of ImmunologySchool of Public Health, Tehran University of Medical SciencesTehranIran

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