Neural stem cells (NSCs) ar self-renewing, multipotential progenitor cells. A single NSC can give rise to a wide variety of CNS cells, including neurons, astrocytes, and oligodendrocytes. Because of these characteristics, there is an increasing interest in NSCs and neural progenitor cells, both from a basic developmental biology perspective and from a clinical one that is aimed at developing therapeutic applications for the damaged brain. Current research into the nature of the NSCs present in the CNS includes the study of the extracellular factors and signal transduction cascades involved in their differentiation and maintenance, their population dynamics, and their localization in the embryonic and adult brain. These lines of research, combined with other studies intended to permit the prospective identification and isolation of NSCs, and their induction into particular neuronal phenotypes--which will be introduced in my talk--should lead to the development of feasible strategies for manipulating NSC cells in situ to treat the damaged brain and spinal cord injury.