The Synergism of Resveratrol-Poly(lactic-co-glycolic acid) (PLGA) and Curcumin-PLGA Nanoparticles in Directing Adipose-Derived Mesenchymal Stem Cells towards Osteoblastic Differentiation

Mesenchymal stem cells are able to differentiate into osteoblasts, which is forced by several growth factors. Similar to growth factors, plant metabolites have been shown to be able to support stem cell differentiation. The aim of this study was to assess the synergistic effects of resveratrol-poly(lactic-co-glycolic acid) (PLGA) and curcumin-PLGA nanoparticles on directing adipose-derived mesenchymal stem cells towards osteoblastic differentiation.

Human mesenchymal stem cells derived from the adipose tissue, after being characterized by flow cytometry, were simultaneously treated with 10 μM concentrations of each of PLGA-resveratrol and PLGA-curcumin nanoparticles. The cytotoxic effects of resveratrol and curcumin were evaluated by the MTT assay, and their differentiating potentials were evaluated by Alizarin red staining.

According to MTT results, neither resveratrol-PLGA nor curcumin-PLGA nanoparticles had no significant toxic effects on the target cells after 24 hours. At the 20 and 10 μM concentrations of resveratrol-PLGA and curcumin-PLGA nanoparticles, respectively, a significant increase was observed in the proliferation of human mesenchymal stem cells. Alizarin red staining showed that treatment with resveratrol-PLGA and curcumin-PLGA nanoparticles increased the deposition of mineral ions in the extracellular matrix, an indicator of the onset of the cellular differentiation process.

The results of this study showed that the simultaneous use of bioactive compounds such as resveratrol-PLGA and curcumin-PLGA nanoparticles can direct stem cells towards osteoblastic differentiation. The simultaneous use of resveratrol-PLGA and curcumin-PLGA nanoparticles increases their efficiency at lower concentrations due to their synergistic effects.