In vitro validation of a closed device enabling the purification of the fluid portion of liposuction aspirates

BACKGROUND: Adipose tissue (AT) harvested through lipoaspiration is widely exploited in plastic and cosmetic surgery, due to its remarkable trophic properties, especially relying on the presence of adipose stem cells (ASCs). The common procedures for ASC isolation are mainly based on tissue fractionation and enzymatic digestion, which require multiple hours of uninterrupted work, unsuitable for direct surgical applications. Recent studies demonstrated the feasibility of isolating adipose stromal cells without the need for enzymatic digestion. These studies reported the processing of the fluid portion of liposucted AT (lipoaspirate fluid, LAF), which contains a significant amount of progenitor cells endowed with plastic and trophic features. Here we introduce a brand new closed device, namely MyStem Evo® kit, which allows non-enzymatic tissue separation and enables the rapid isolation of LAF from human liposucted AT METHODS:: AT was liposucted from 14 donors, split into aliquots, and alternatively processed using either centrifugation or the MyStem EVO® kit, to separate fatty and LAF portions. The samples were comparatively analyzed by flow cytometry, histology, and differentiation assays. Osteo- and angio-inductive features were analyzed through in vitro co-culture assays. RESULTS: The alternative procedures enabled comparable yields; the kit rapidly isolated LAF comprising a homogenous cell population with ASC immunophenotype, bi-lineage potential, and efficient osteo- and angio-inductive features. CONCLUSIONS: MyStem EVO® allows the rapid isolation of LAF with trophic properties within a closed system, potentially useful for regenerative medicine applications.