Abstract : The renoprotective effects of endothelial progenitor cells (EPC) have been clearly identified and many results have shown their successful use in neovas-cularization of ischemic tissues associated with blood vessel diseases. However, the availability of a sustainable source of EPC for large therapeutic applications remains critical. The aim of this work is to ensure the production of a specific EPC profile from mesen-chymal stem cells (MSC). Non-adherent EPC were significantly amplified after 6 days of angiogenic growth factor activation. Three day-EPC showed an over expression of the heamatopoietic markers CD34 and CD45 with a commitment to endothe-lial lineage with the expression of CD31 and CD146 cell markers. MSC lost their mesenchymal profile by down-regulating the CD90 and CD105 expression. Cytokeratin 8/18 and von Willebrand Factor VIII were progressively expressed on EPC as well as the monocytic CD14. In six-day EPC, all of the CD31+ cells expressed CD14 and CD146. CD54, CD11a, and CD49d adhesion molecules were also strongly expressed in both 3-day and 6-day EPC. These findings suggest that MSC-derived EPC might be a unique population of CD34+CD45+C D14+CD31+CD146+ cells sharing both stemness and progenitor characteristics of endothelial cells and monocytes, and that this culture model improved EPC production and expansion for a potential future use in vascular diseases.
