Isolating stem cells from soft musculoskeletal tissues.

Adult stem cells have long been discussed in regards to their application in regenerative medicine. Adult stem cells have generated a great deal of excitement for treating injured and diseased tissues due to their impressive capabilities to undergo multi-lineage cell differentiation and their self-renewal ability. Most importantly, these qualities have made them advantageous for use in autologous cell transplantation therapies. The current protocol will introduce the readers to the modified preplate technique where soft tissues of the musculoskeletal system, e.g. tendon and muscle, are 1(st) enzymatically dissociated and then placed in collagen coated flasks with medium. The supernatant, which is composed of medium and the remaining floating cells, is serially transferred daily to new flasks. The stem cells are the slowest to adhere to the flasks which is usually takes 5-7 days (serial transfers or preplates). By using this technique, adult stem cells present in these tissues can be easily harvested through fairly non-invasive procedures.