Virus-free and oncogene-free induced pluripotent stem cell reprogramming in cord blood and peripheral blood in patients with lung disease

Aim: A virus- and oncogene-free induced pluripotent stem cell (iPSC) reprogramming method was developed with cord blood-derived mononuclear cells (CBDMNC) and peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMNC) from patients with genetic lung diseases. Method: iPSC reprogramming used small molecules, hematopoietic stem cell (HSC) expansion media and episomal vectors that lacked Myc and Lin28. Results: All iPSC colonies were fully reprogrammed based on SSEA4 expression. A total of 300,000 CBDMNC was the optimal cell number for cell reprogramming, which was associated with a 13-fold increase in CD34+ cells upon exposure to HSC media. Cell reprogramming was not observed in the absence of HSC expansion media. The method also reprogrammed PBMNC in patients with cystic fibrosis or α-1 antitrypsin deficiency. Oncogene-free iPSC cell lines differentiated into all three germ cell lineages. Conclusion: This iPSC reprogramming approach satisfies an important regulatory requirement for iPSC-based cell therapies with lower clinical risk from CBDMNC and PBMNC.