Krejčí E, Grim M
Charles University in Prague, First Faculty of Medicine, Institute of Anatomy, Laboratory for Molecular Embryology, Prague, Czech Republic.
Folia Biol (Praha). 2010;56(4):149-57.
Neural crest (NC) is a transient embryonic tissue, whose cells are motile and multipotent until they reach their destination and differentiate according to microenvironmental cues into a variety of cell types. However, a subpopulation of these cells remains multipotent. They were found, among other locations, in a bulge of adult murine whisker follicle and were designated epidermal neural crest stem cells (EPI-NCSCs). The aim of this work is to ascertain whether the EPI-NCSCs could be isolated from human hair follicles as well. Due to their exceptional properties, they could represent potential candidates for stem cell therapy. The presented work focuses on the isolation and characterization of EPI-NCSCs from human skin. We obtained a population of cells that expressed markers of NC, NC progeny and general stem cell markers. After prolonged cultivation, the subpopulation of cells spontaneously differentiated into some of NC derivatives, i.e. neurons, smooth muscle cells and Schwann cell progenitors. Targeted differentiation with neuregulin 1 highly increased the number of Schwann cells in the culture. Human EPI-NCSCs could also grow under non-adherent conditions and form 3-dimensional spheres. Microarray analysis was performed and gene profile of human EPI-NCSCs was compared with the list of key genes of murine EPI-NCSCs and the list of genes up-regulated in newly induced NC cells. This revealed 94% and 88% similarity, respectively. All presented results strongly support the NCSC identity and multipotency of isolated human cells. These cells could thus be used in regenerative medicine, especially because of the easy accessibility of donor tissue.
神经嵴（NC）是一种短暂存在的胚胎组织，其细胞具有迁移能力且具有多能性，直到它们到达目的地并根据微环境线索分化为多种细胞类型。然而，这些细胞的一个亚群仍然具有多能性。除其他位置外，它们在成年小鼠胡须毛囊的一个隆起部位被发现，并被命名为表皮神经嵴干细胞（EPI-NCSCs）。这项工作的目的是确定是否也可以从人毛囊中分离出EPI-NCSCs。由于它们具有特殊的特性，它们可能是干细胞治疗的潜在候选者。目前的工作重点是从人皮肤中分离和鉴定EPI-NCSCs。我们获得了一群表达神经嵴、神经嵴后代和一般干细胞标志物的细胞。经过长时间培养，细胞亚群自发分化为一些神经嵴衍生物，即神经元、平滑肌细胞和雪旺细胞前体。用神经调节蛋白1进行定向分化可显著增加培养物中雪旺细胞的数量。人EPI-NCSCs也可以在非贴壁条件下生长并形成三维球体。进行了微阵列分析，并将人EPI-NCSCs的基因谱与小鼠EPI-NCSCs的关键基因列表以及新诱导的神经嵴细胞中上调的基因列表进行了比较。结果分别显示出94%和88%的相似性。所有呈现的结果都有力地支持了分离出的人细胞的神经嵴干细胞身份和多能性。因此，这些细胞可用于再生医学，特别是因为供体组织易于获取。
