Comparison of differentiation potential of ovarian surface epithelial stem cells into Oocyte-like cells between human- and mice-derived cells.

BACKGROUND: The ovarian surface epithelium (OSE) stem cells are crucial components of the human ovary and play a significant role in both the reproductive function and ovulatory wound repair. Harnessing these stem cells could provide a novel therapeutic strategy for reproductive disorders. METHODS: In this study, we determine and compare the differentiation potential of OSE stem cells into Oocyte-like cells between human and mice-derived OSE stem cells. In addition, we assessed OSE cellular characteristics associated with their stemness and self-renewal abilities and demonstrated their capacity for in vitro differentiation. RESULTS: We found that the ovarian surface epithelium harbored putative stem cells characterized by Alkaline Phosphatase (AP) activity, cell proliferation, expression of mesenchymal lineage surface markers, and pluripotent transcriptional markers. Interestingly, human-derived OSE stem cells exhibited increased AP activity and cell proliferation compared to mouse OSE stem cells, suggesting high levels of self-renewal and differentiation potential. Moreover, our evaluation of the in vitro differentiation potential into Oocyte-like cells for human or mouse OSE stem cells demonstrated an enhanced oogenesis potential for human OSE stem cells compared to mouse OSE cells, as evidenced by the analysis of germ cell marker expression and the production of Oocyte-like cells. CONCLUSION: Our data highlighted the difference in the characterization and differentiation potential into Oocyte-like cells between human-derived OSE stem cells and mouse-derived OSE stem cells and lay a foundation for a future establishment of stem cell line with implications for reproductive cell therapy. In the realm of reproductive medicine, infertile patients with nonfunctional ovaries represent a significant area of interest, and any potential to regenerate their ovaries would hold great importance.