Basic Study
Copyright ©The Author(s) 2020. Published by Baishideng Publishing Group Inc. All rights reserved.
World J Stem Cells. Nov 26, 2020; 12(11): 1366-1376
Published online Nov 26, 2020. doi: 10.4252/wjsc.v12.i11.1366
Application of cattle placental stem cells for treating ovarian follicular cyst
Shao-Yu Peng, Tsung-Hsin Wu, Tzu-Yi Lin, Ling-Yien Hii, Kok-Seong Chan, Tzu-Yen Fu, Shen-Chang Chang, Perng-Chih Shen, Kang-You Liu, Steven W. Shaw
Shao-Yu Peng, Tsung-Hsin Wu, Tzu-Yen Fu, Perng-Chih Shen, Kang-You Liu, Department of Animal Science, National Pingtung University of Science and Technology, Pingtung 912, Taiwan
Tzu-Yi Lin, Steven W. Shaw, College of Medicine, Chang Gung University, Taoyuan 333, Taiwan
Ling-Yien Hii, Kok-Seong Chan, Steven W. Shaw, Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Taipei Chang Gung Memorial Hospital, Taipei 105, Taiwan
Shen-Chang Chang, Kaohsiung Animal Propagation Station, Livestock Research Institute, Council of Agriculture, Executive Yuan, Pingtung 912, Taiwan
Steven W. Shaw, Prenatal Cell and Gene Therapy Group, Institute for Women's Health, University College London, London WC1E 6HU, United Kingdom
Author contributions: Peng SY and Shaw SW designed and coordinated the study; Peng SY, Wu TH, and Fu TY performed the experiments; Chang SC and Shen PC analyzed the data; Peng SY, Liu KY, and Shaw SW interpreted the data; Peng SY drafted the manuscript; Lin TY, Hii LY, and Chan KS revised the manuscript; Shaw SW critically reviewed the manuscript; All authors were involved in the amendment and approval of the final manuscript.
Supported by Chang Gung Memorial Hospital, No. CPRPG1J0021; Ministry of Science and Technology Taiwan, No. MOST 108-2314-B-182A-085, No. MOST 105-2313-B-020 -001 -MY2, and No. MOST 108-2313-B-020 -007 -MY3.
Institutional animal care and use committee statement: All procedures involving animals conformed to the internationally accepted principle for care and use of animals from the National Pingtung University of Science and Technology Affidavit of Approval of Animal Use Committee (IACUC protocol number: NPUST-104-048).
Conflict-of-interest statement: There are no conflicts of interest regarding the publication of this paper.
Data sharing statement: No additional data are available.
ARRIVE guidelines statement: The authors had read the ARRIVE guidelines. The manuscript was prepared and revised according to the ARRIVE guidelines.
Open-Access: This article is an open-access article that was selected by an in-house editor and fully peer-reviewed by external reviewers. It is distributed in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution NonCommercial (CC BY-NC 4.0) license, which permits others to distribute, remix, adapt, build upon this work non-commercially, and license their derivative works on different terms, provided the original work is properly cited and the use is non-commercial. See: http://creativecommons.org/Licenses/by-nc/4.0/
Corresponding author: Steven W. Shaw, MD, PhD, Associate Professor, Director, Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Taipei Chang Gung Memorial Hospital, No. 199 Dunhua North Road, Taipei 105, Taiwan. dr.shaw@me.com
Received: March 12, 2020
Peer-review started: March 12, 2020
First decision: May 26, 2020
Revised: July 2, 2020
Accepted: September 8, 2020
Article in press: September 8, 2020
Published online: November 26, 2020
Abstract
BACKGROUND

High humidity and temperature in Taiwan have significant effects on the reproductivity of Holstein cattle, resulting in the occurrence of bovine ovarian follicular cyst (OFC). Because of economic loss from OFC, manual rupture and hormone injection have been advocated for the management of OFC. However, these incomplete treatments increase hormone resistance in cattle. Mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) derived from placental stem cells (PSCs) demonstrate potential properties for the treatment of several diseases via promoting angiogenesis and immune modulation.

AIM

To establish the possibility of cattle placental stem cells (CPSCs) as a treatment modality for OFC of cows in Taiwan.

METHODS

The cows with OFC were divided into three groups: control (BC1 and BC2), hormone (H1 and H2), and CPSC (PS1 and PS2) treatment groups. In the hormone treatment group, the cows were given gonadotrophin-releasing hormone (GnRH)-prostaglandin-GnRH intramuscular injection with or without drainage of follicular fluid. In the CPSC treatment group, CPSCs were isolated from the placenta after labor. With the identification of surface antigen on stem cells, the cows were administered ovarian injection of 1 × 106 or 6 × 106 CPSCs with drainage. In all groups, OFC was scanned by ultrasound once a week for a total of seven times. The concentrations of estradiol and progesterone in serum were tested in the same period. The estrus cycle was analyzed by food intake and activity. If estrus was detected, artificial insemination was conducted. Then the cow was monitored by ultrasound for confirmation of pregnancy.

RESULTS

After 7 d of culture, CPSCs were successfully isolated from placental pieces. CPSCs significantly proliferated every 24 h and had high expression of MSC markers such as cluster of differentiation 44, as determined by flow cytometry. Ultrasound showed lower numbers of OFCs with drainage of follicular fluid. We achieved recovery rates of 0%, 50%, 50%, 75%, 75% and 75% in BC1, BC2, H1, H2, PS1, and PS2, respectively. Higher concentrations of progesterone were detected in the CPSC treatment groups. However, both hormone and CPSC treatment groups had no significant difference in the concentration of estradiol. The estrus rate was 0%, 100%, 25%, 75%, 75% and 75% in BC1, BC2, H1, H2, PS1, and PS2, respectively. The two fetuses were born in H2 and PS1. In brief, cows with CPSC injection achieved higher recovery, estrus, and inseminated conception rates.

CONCLUSION

CPSCs have efficacy in treating cows with OFC, and thus, may serve as an alternative treatment for reproductive disorders.

Keywords: Cow, Estrus rate, Ovarian follicular cyst, Placenta, Recovery rate, Stem cell

Core Tip: Ovarian follicular cysts (OFCs) harm the reproductivity and milk production of cows. To deal with economic loss, this study established the possibility of using cattle placental stem cells (CPSCs) for treating OFC. We drained the follicular fluid and injected CPSCs into the ovaries. Then the CPSCs significantly proliferated and expressed high levels of cluster of differentiation 44. Elevated concentrations of progesterone in serum were observed. Decreased numbers of OFCs were shown by ultrasound. Cows with CPSC injection had higher recovery, estrus, and inseminated conception rates. These outcomes indicate the therapeutic potential of CPSCs for OFCs in cattle.