Method for preparing pellets of chondrocytes from human induced pluripotent stem cells, and use thereof

Abstract

A method for preparing chondrocyte pellets including: (a) culturing human induced pluripotent stem cells so as to form and obtain embryoid bodies; (b) inducing the embryonic bodies obtained in step (a) to become outgrowth cells and isolating same; and (c) culturing the outgrowth cells isolated in step (b) in a pellet form. A pharmaceutical composition including the chondrocyte pellets prepared by the preparation method; or a method for preventing or treating arthritis, including administering the chondrocyte pellets prepared by the method to an arthritis patient. Chondrocyte pellets of the present invention have a remarkably high rate of differentiation into chondrocytes, uniform size, and a homogeneous differentiation degree, and a pharmaceutical composition, including the pellets, has excellent cartilage regeneration effects at the site of cartilage damage, and is in injectable form, which does not require surgery, such that pain is relieved and a continuous arthritis treatment is provided.

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.