© 2002 by Oxford University Press
Journal of the National Cancer Institute, Vol. 94, No. 2, 87,
January 16, 2002
© 2002 Oxford University Press
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Research Update: Neural Cells Cultured from Stem Cells
Human embryonic stem cells have the ability to proliferate and form any type of cell. But if they are ever going to be of clinical use, that capacity will need to be tamed.
Now, the two groups that were the first to derive human embryonic stem cells report that they have been able to create almost pure cultures of primitive brain cells. And when these cells were implanted into the brains of newborn mice, the grafts appeared successful.
"These cells have the same look and feel as [resident] mouse brain cells, though their function is yet to be demonstrated," said Lorenz Studer, M.D., at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center in New York.
The two research groups published their work last month in Nature Structural Biology. One group is a collaboration of researchers from Hadassah University and Monash University in Melbourne. The other group is a collaboration between researchers from the University of Wisconsin and the University of Bonn.
The two groups used different approaches to produce their cultures of primitive neural cells, but both ended up with a population that was greater than 96% primitive neuronal cells, based on the presence of markers like nestin or N-CAM. The neuronal cultures were stable over multiple generations, unlike the situation seen with adult brain stem cells.
And when triggered to fully differentiate in the culture dish, they formed the three major types of brain cells: neurons, astrocytes (that form the connective tissue of the brain), and oligodendrocytes, the highly sought-after cells that, at least in mice models, appear to repair damaged myelin sheaths. There were also small numbers of dopaminergic neurons, that might serve to help Parkinson’s patients.
Both groups transplanted the primitive neuronal cells into the subventricular region of new born mice, the site where resident stem cells are found. The cells appeared to integrate seamlessly into the surrounding brain regions, forming neurons, astrocytes, and, in one case, the rare oligodendrocyte.
The work bodes well for progress in brain cell transplants for Parkinson’s or demyelinating diseases. However, both groups point out that the transplants were done in newborn mice whose still developing brains may provide cues that are not present in the adult brain.
But clinical issues aside, "this is a very important platform for studying neural development," said Studer. "The biology is completely new, not incremental. We’re getting jumps of insight."
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