Mesenchymal Stem Cell Differentiation Induced by Lyophilized PRP During Early Osteogenesis

Abstract

Platelet-rich plasma (PRP) contains a complex mixture of growth factors, cytokines, chemokines, miRNAs, hormones and ions that can modulate early reparative events, yet its effects on osteoblastic commitment remain unclear. We examined the transcriptional response of human mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) exposed for 24 h or 7 d to conditioned media containing PRP or lyophilized PRP (lyPRP), using osteoinductive medium (OM) as positive control. A targeted 48-gene panel spanning differentiation (RUNX2, SP7, ALPL), adhesion/cytoskeleton (ITGB1, PXN, SRC), cell-cycle regulators (CDKs, CDKNs, MKI67) and receptor tyrosine-kinase/PI3K nodes was quantified, with two-way ANOVA testing time and treatment effects; multivariate structure was explored by PCA and correlation networks. PRP and lyPRP consistently upregulated proliferation/viability and adhesion modules - most notably cyclins/CDKs, SRC-axis and selected RTK/PI3K components - while exerting limited induction of canonical osteogenic drivers. Compared with OM, RUNX2, SP7 and ALPL remained lower under PRP or lyPRP, indicating weaker osteoinductive pressure despite preserved metabolic fitness. PCA and network analyses separated PRP/lyPRP from OM, revealing distinct coordination of signaling programs over time. Collectively, PRP and lyPRP favor early proliferative and matrix-interaction states in MSCs but display reduced transcriptional push toward osteogenic differentiation relative to OM. These data support PRP's role in priming cellular proliferation and microenvironmental readiness while underscoring the need for dosing, timing and formulation strategies if osteoinduction is the therapeutic goal.