Production of Autologous Platelet-Rich Plasma for Boosting In Vitro Human Fibroblast Expansion

Summary

This protocol presents a device that produces PRP to boost the in vitro expansion of cells in a 100% autologous fibroblast culture system.

Abstract

There is currently great clinical interest in the use of autologous fibroblasts for skin repair. In most cases, culture of skin cells in vitro is required. However, cell culture using xenogenic or allogenic culture media has some disadvantages (i.e., risk of infectious agent transmission or slow cell expansion). Here, an autologous culture system is developed for the expansion of human skin fibroblast cells in vitro using a patient’s own platelet-rich plasma (PRP). Human dermal fibroblasts are isolated from the patient while undergoing abdominoplasty. Cultures are followed for up to 7 days using a medium supplemented with either fetal bovine serum (FBS) or PRP. Blood cell content in PRP preparations, proliferation, and fibroblast differentiation are assessed. This protocol describes the method for obtaining a standardized, non-activated preparation of PRP using a dedicated medical device. The preparation requires only a medical device (CuteCell-PRP) and centrifuge. This device is suitable under sufficient medical practice conditions and is a one-step, apyrogenic, and sterile closed system that requires a single, soft spin centrifugation of 1,500 x g for 5 min. After centrifugation, the blood components are separated, and the platelet-rich plasma is easily collected. This device allows a quick, consistent, and standardized preparation of PRP that can be used as a cell culture supplement for in vitro expansion of human cells. The PRP obtained here contains a 1.5-fold platelet concentration compared to whole blood together, with a preferential removal of red and white blood cells. It is shown that PRP presents a boosting effect in cell proliferation compared to FBS (7.7x) and that fibroblasts are activated upon PRP treatment.

Introduction

Regenerative medicine aims to heal or replace tissues and organs damaged by age, disease, or trauma as well as correct congenital defects. In autologous therapy, cells or tissue are withdrawn from a patient, expanded or modified, then reintroduced to the donor. This form of therapeutics has broad potential in the field of dermatology¹. In autologous fibroblast therapy, a patient’s fibroblasts are cultured and reinjected to treat wrinkles, rhytids, or acne scars. As fibroblasts are the main functional cells in the dermis, injection of autologous fibroblasts may be more beneficial than other therapies in facial rejuvenation

Protocol

The study protocol complied with the Declaration of Helsinki, and all patients provided written informed consent before participating in the study. Skin samples are obtained from healthy women undergoing abdominoplasty in the Plastic, Reconstructive and Aesthetic Surgery Department at Geneva University Hospitals (Geneva, Switzerland). The procedure conforms to the principles of the Declaration of Helsinki and was approved by the local institutional ethics committee (protocol #3126).

1. Preparati.......

Discussion

The advantages of using autologous fibroblasts as a natural alternative compared to other filler materials in wound cell therapy include good biocompatibility, minimal side effects, and easiness of harvesting and use. However, before using these therapeutics in a daily clinical setting, proper preclinical studies are necessary to identify the growth features and assess the biological function and safety of isolated fibroblasts both before and after transplantation. Thus, directly after the isolation process, in vitro exp.......

Materials

Name	Company	Catalog Number	Comments
96 well black clear flat bottom	BD Falcon	353219	32/case
Cell trace Violet Dye	Thermo Fischer Scientific	C34557	180 assays
CuteCell PRP	Regen Lab SA	CC-PRP-3T	3 tubes per package
DAPI	Sigma	D9542	1 mg
DMEM	Gibco	52400-025	500 mL
FBS	Gibco	10270106	500 mL
Glutamine 200 mM	Gibco	25030024	100 mL
Hematology Counter	Sysmex	KK-21N
Heparin 5000E Liquemine	Drossapharm AG		0.5 mL
HEPES Buffer Solution 1M	Gibco	15630-056	100 mL
Liberase DH	Roche	5401054001	2x 5 mg per package
MEM NEAA 100x	Gibco	11140-035	100 mL
Na Pyruvate 1mg/mL	Gibco	11360-039	100 mL
Penicillin streptomycin	Gibco	15140122	100 mL
Phalloidin alexa Fluor 488	Molecular Probes	A12379	300 units
RPMI	Gibco	31966-021	500 mL
Trypsin 1x 0.25%	Gibco	25050-014	100 mL
Trypsin EDTA 0.25%	Gibco	25200056	100 mL