Understanding How Fat-Derived Cells Support Blood Vessel Formation
Ekta Manocha, Alessandra Consonni, Fulvio Baggi, Emilio Ciusani, Valentina Cocce, Francesca Paino, Carlo Tremolada, Arnaldo Caruso, Giulio Alessandri · International Journal of Molecular Sciences · 2022
A Special Type of Cell Shows Promise for Regenerative Medicine
Researchers have identified a specific subset of cells within micro-fragmented fat tissue that could play a crucial role in promoting blood vessel growth and repair. These cells, known as pericytes (pronounced "perry-sites"), act as support cells for blood vessels throughout the body.
What Are Pericytes?
Pericytes are specialized cells that wrap around the smallest blood vessels in our body. Think of them as scaffolding that helps blood vessels stay stable and function properly. They communicate closely with the cells that line blood vessels (called endothelial cells) to ensure proper blood flow.
The CD146 Marker Makes a Difference
The study focused on pericytes that carry a specific protein marker called CD146. When researchers isolated these CD146-positive cells from Lipogems-processed fat tissue, they discovered these cells were particularly effective at:
Interacting with blood vessel cells
Promoting the growth of new blood vessels (angiogenesis)
Responding to growth signals that guide cell movement
Why This Matters for Patients
This laboratory research suggests that the fat tissue processed through Lipogems technology contains cells with strong regenerative potential. The CD146-positive pericytes may help explain why micro-fragmented fat tissue has shown benefits in clinical applications - these cells appear naturally equipped to support blood vessel health and tissue repair.
Key Findings
The research team found that CD146-positive pericytes showed enhanced ability to migrate toward healing signals and form connections with blood vessel cells. This suggests they represent a more mature, therapeutically relevant cell population within fat tissue.
This basic science research helps explain the cellular mechanisms behind the regenerative properties of micro-fragmented adipose tissue used in clinical treatments.
Original Publication
CD146+ Pericytes Subset Isolated from Human Micro-Fragmented Fat Tissue Display a Strong Interaction with Endothelial Cells: A Potential Cell Target for Therapeutic Angiogenesis
Ekta Manocha, Alessandra Consonni, Fulvio Baggi, Emilio Ciusani, Valentina Cocce, Francesca Paino, Carlo Tremolada, Arnaldo Caruso, Giulio Alessandri · International Journal of Molecular Sciences · 2022
Pericytes (PCs) are mesenchymal stromal cells (MSCs) that function as support cells and play a role in tissue regeneration and, in particular, vascular homeostasis. PCs promote endothelial cells (ECs) survival which is critical for vessel stabilization, maturation, and remodeling. In this study, PCs were isolated from human micro-fragmented adipose tissue (MFAT) obtained from fat lipoaspirate and were characterized as NG2+/PDGFRβ+/CD105+ cells. Here, we tested the fat-derived PCs for the dispensability of the CD146 marker with the aim of better understanding the role of these PC subpopulations on angiogenesis. Cells from both CD146-positive (CD146+) and negative (CD146-) populations were observed to interact with human umbilical vein ECs (HUVECs). In addition, fat-derived PCs were able to induce angiogenesis of ECs in spheroids assay; and conditioned medium (CM) from both PCs and fat tissue itself led to the proliferation of ECs, thereby marking their role in angiogenesis stimulation. However, we found that CD146+ cells were more responsive to PDGF-BB stimulated migration, adhesion, and angiogenic interaction with ECs, possibly owing to their higher expression of NCAM/CD56 than the corresponding CD146- subpopulation. We conclude that in fat tissue, CD146-expressing cells may represent a more mature pericyte subpopulation that may have higher efficacy in controlling and stimulating vascular regeneration and stabilization than their CD146-negative counterpart.