The role of iHsp70 in myogenic stem cell resistance

Abstract

Various pathological processes caused by toxic environmental impacts negatively affect all types of cells including stem cells. Heat shock and other stresses are known to afford protection of various intracellular systems by inducing iHsp70 (inducible heat shock protein 70). The goal of this study was to investigate various ways of iHsp70 induction and its role in the viability of newly developed rabbit skeletal-muscle-derived stem cells. Skeletal myoblasts (Mio9), subjected to heat and chemical stresses, transiently or permanently transfected, significantly increased the intracellular amount of iHsp70 in rabbit skeletal myoblasts that correlated with increased cell resistance to secondary toxic exposures. The efficiency of iHsp70 induction has been proved using indirect immunocytochemistry, immunobloting and flow cytometry. Adult myogenic stem cells with increased iHsp70 content are a useful model to study the molecular mechanisms of cell resistance both in vitro and in vivo, improving the survival of grafted stem cells and the efficiency of cytotherapy. Keywords: stem cells, heat-shock proteins, viability, adult myogenic stem cells