Wharton’s Jelly, named after the English physician Thomas Wharton is a gelatinous connective tissue or “jelly,” that protects the inner vessels of the umbilical cord. Recently researchers have demonstrated that Wharton’s Jelly contains mesenchymal stem cells that may assist in regenerating damaged tissue.

A November 2020 paper in the Journal of orthopaedic surgery and research (1) comments: “Wharton’s jelly is a connective tissue located within the umbilical cord largely composed of mesenchymal stem cells and extracellular matrix components, including collagen, chondroitin sulfate (a building block of collagen and cartilage), hyaluronic acid, and sulfated proteoglycans (micro molecules found on the surface of cells that help regulate proliferation, migration, differentiation.) Wharton’s jelly is a promising and applicable biologic source for orthopedic regenerative application.”

Wharton’s Jelly and the management of knee osteoarthritis

A December 2023 paper (2) from a team of international researchers reviewed and assessed current studies on Wharton’s Jelly and the management of knee osteoarthritis.

In this paper, data was collected from 19 published studies with limited clinical numbers. The researchers offered this assessment:

  • “Perinatal tissues including Wharton’s jelly and associated mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) can be used for the management of knee osteoarthritis.” However, “The efficacy of Wharton’s jelly and associated mesenchymal stem cell in the management of knee osteoarthritis is still controversial . . “The present published evidence suggests that Wharton’s jelly and associated mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) offer an encouraging alternative for the management of knee osteoarthritis.”

1 Main BJ, Valk JA, Maffulli N, Rodriguez HC, Gupta M, Stone IW, El-Amin SF, Gupta A. Umbilical cord-derived Wharton’s jelly for regenerative medicine applications in orthopedic surgery: a systematic review protocol. Journal of orthopaedic surgery and research. 2020 Dec;15:1-5.

2 Aratikatla A, Maffulli N, Gupta M, Potti IA, Potty AG, Gupta A. Wharton’s jelly and osteoarthritis of the knee. Br Med Bull. 2024 Mar 13;149(1):13-31. doi: 10.1093/bmb/ldad030. PMID: 38061765; PMCID: PMC10993459.