Stem Cell Isolation from Human Wharton's Jelly: A Study of Their Differentiation Ability into Lens Fiber Cells

Recently, the use of stem cells has expanded into numerous areas including cell therapy. In this study, we investigated the differentiation capacity of human Wharton’s jelly stem cells (hWJSCs) into lens fiber cells. Morphological changes and expressions of four crystallin genes (αA, αB, βB1 and βB3) were studied. The bovine vitreous body has been shown to induce expression of crystallin genes in hWJSCs. By using the vitreous as a lens fiber cell inducer, we showed that αB-, βB1- and βB3-crystallin genes expressed in hWJSCs.