Tehran University of Medical Sciences Iranian Journal of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology 1735-1502 12 1 2013 03 15 37 49 EN Mohsen Saeidi Department of Immunology, School of Medicine, Golestan University of Medical Sciences, Gorgan, Iran AND Department of Immunology, School of Medicine, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran Ahmad Masoud Department of Immunology, School of Medicine, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran Yadollah Shakiba Department of Immunology, School of Medicine, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran Jamshid Hadjati Department of Immunology, School of Medicine, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran Mandana Mohyeddin Bonab Department of Immunology, School of Medicine, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran Mohammad Hossein Nicknam Department of Immunology, School of Medicine, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran AND Molecular Immunology Research Center, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran Mostafa Latifpour Department of Anatomy, School of Medicine, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran Behrooz Nikbin Department of Immunology, School of Medicine, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran AND Molecular Immunology Research Center, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran 2015 10 16 The Wharton’s jelly of the umbilical cord is believed to be a source of mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) which can be therapeutically applied in degenerative diseases. In this study, we investigated the immunomodulatory effect of umbilical cord derived- mesenchymal stem  cells (UC-MSCs) and  bone  marrow-derived-mesenchymal stem  cells (BM-MSCs) on differentiation, maturation, and endocytosis of monocyte-derived dendritic cells in a transwell culture system under laboratory conditions. Monocytes were differentiated into immature dendritic cells (iDCs) in the presence of GM-CSF and IL-4 for 6 days and then differentiated into mature dendritic cells (mDCs) in the presence of TNF-α for 2 days. In every stage of differentiation, immature and mature dendritic cells were separately co- cultured with UC-MSCs and BM-MSCs. The findings showed that UC-MSCs and BM-MSCs inhibited strongly differentiation and maturation of dendritic cells at higher dilution ratios (1:1). The BM-MSCs and UC-MSCs showed more inhibitory effect on CD1a, CD83, CD86 expression, and dendritic cell endocytic activity, respectively. On the other hand, these cells severely up-regulated CD14 marker expression.  We concluded that UC-MSCs and BM-MSCs could inhibit differentiation, maturation and endocytosis in monocyte-derived DCs through the secreted factors and free of any cell- cell contacts  under  laboratory conditions. As DCs  are believed to  be the  main antigen presenting cells for naïve T cells in triggering immune responses, it would be logical that their inhibitory effect on differentiation, maturation and function can decrease or modulate immune and inflammatory responses. https://ijaai.tums.ac.ir/index.php/ijaai/article/view/536 https://ijaai.tums.ac.ir/index.php/ijaai/article/download/536/468