Renal Differentiation of Mesenchymal Stem Cells Seeded on Nanofibrous Scaffolds Improved by Human Renal Tubular Cell Lines-Conditioned Medium

Kidney injuries and renal dysfunctions are one of the most important clinical problems, and tissue engineering could be a valuable method for solving it. The objective of this study was to investigate the synergistic effect of renal cell line-conditioned medium and Polycaprolactone (PCL) nanofibers on renal differentiation of human mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs). In the current study, after stem cells isolation and characterization, PCL nanofibrous scaffold was fabricated using electrospinning methods and characterized morphologically, mechanically, and for biocompatibility. The renal differentiation of seeded MSCs on the surface of PCL nanofibers with and without human renal tubular cell lines-conditioned medium was investigated by evaluation of eight important renal-related genes expression by real-time reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) and immunocytochemistry. Fabricated nanofibrous scaffolds were good in all characterized items. Almost highest expression of all genes was detected in stem cells seeded on PCL under conditioned media in comparison with the stem cells seeded on PCL, tissue culture polystyrene (TCPS) under renal induction medium, and TCPS under conditioned medium. According to the results, PCL nanofibers in contribution with conditioned medium can provide the optimal conditions for renal differentiation of MSCs and could be a promising candidate for renal tissue engineering application.