Rowe Eric W, Jeftinija Dusan M, Jeftinija Ksenija, Jeftinija Srdija
Department of Biomedical Sciences, Iowa State University, 1098 Vet Med Bldg, Ames, Iowa 50011, USA.
Stem Cells. 2005 Sep;23(8):1044-9. doi: 10.1634/stemcells.2005-0037. Epub 2005 Jun 13.
In order for stem cells to fulfill their clinical promise, we must understand their developmental transitions and it must be possible to control the differentiation of stem cells into specific cell fates. To understand the mechanism of the sequential restriction and multipotency of stem cells, we have established culture conditions that allow the differentiation of multipotential neural stem cells from postnatal stem cells. We used immunocytochemistry, fluorescence microscopy, and calcium imaging to demonstrate that progeny of adult rat neural stem cells develop into functional neurons that release excitatory neurotransmitters. We also found that the nontoxic heavy chain fragment of tetanus toxin, a toxin that targets neurons with high specificity, retained the specificity toward neural stem cell-derived neurons. These studies show that neural stem cells derived from adult tissues retain the potential to differentiate into functional neurons with morphological and functional properties of mature central nervous system neurons.
为了使干细胞实现其临床应用前景，我们必须了解它们的发育转变，并且必须能够控制干细胞向特定细胞命运的分化。为了理解干细胞的顺序限制和多能性机制，我们建立了培养条件，使多能神经干细胞能够从出生后的干细胞中分化出来。我们使用免疫细胞化学、荧光显微镜和钙成像技术来证明成年大鼠神经干细胞的后代能够发育成释放兴奋性神经递质的功能性神经元。我们还发现，破伤风毒素的无毒重链片段，一种对神经元具有高度特异性靶向作用的毒素，对神经干细胞衍生的神经元仍保持特异性。这些研究表明，源自成年组织的神经干细胞保留了分化为具有成熟中枢神经系统神经元形态和功能特性的功能性神经元的潜力。
