Hydrogen Gas Keeps Stem Cells Young and Healthy During Lab Growth
Hydrogen gas treatment prolongs replicative lifespan of bone marrow multipotential stromal cells in vitro while preserving differentiation and paracrine potentials
Research hubs: Musculoskeletal System
This research was done on cells or tissue in a lab, not in people or animals.
- Evidence type
- Laboratory study (cells or tissue)
- Authors
- Haruhisa Kawasaki, Jianjun Guan, Kenichi Tamama
- Journal
- Biochemical and Biophysical Research Communications
- Year
- 2010
- PMID
- 20570654
- Study Type
- Cell Culture
- Delivery
- Gas
- Dose
- 3% hydrogen gas addition to culture medium
- H₂ concentration
- 3% H2 gas
- Outcome
- Positive
- Peer Reviewed
- Yes
- Cited by
- 58 (OpenAlex, as of November 2026)
- Country
- United States
TL;DR
Adding hydrogen gas to bone marrow stem cell cultures helps keep the cells young and functional, potentially improving their use in healing damaged tissues.
Key Finding
Hydrogen gas at 3% concentration extended how long bone marrow stem cells could divide in laboratory culture while preserving their ability to differentiate into other cell types and maintain therapeutic functions.
Summary
Researchers tested whether hydrogen gas could help bone marrow stem cells (cells that can develop into different cell types) stay healthy and functional when grown in the laboratory. They found that exposing these cells to 3% hydrogen gas allowed them to divide more times before aging, while keeping their ability to transform into other cell types and release helpful substances. Surprisingly, the benefit didn't appear to come from hydrogen's known ability to reduce harmful molecules called hydroxyl radicals.
Practical Takeaway
This is early laboratory research in cultured cells, not humans or animals. While it suggests hydrogen gas may help preserve stem cells during medical preparation, much more research is needed to understand whether this would translate to benefits in actual cell therapy treatments. The mechanism behind the effect remains unclear.
Abstract (excerpt)
Cell therapy with bone marrow multipotential stromal cells/mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) represents a promising approach in the field of regenerative medicine. Low frequency of MSCs in adult bone marrow necessitates ex vivo expansion of MSCs after harvest; however, such a manipulation causes…