Stem Cells Research Today is a free monthly online journal that collates and summarizes the latest research about Stem Cells, including details on research, transplants, therapy, benefits.

Functional neuronal differentiation of bone marrow-derived mesenchymal stem cells.

Tropel P, Platet N, Platel JC, Noël D, Albrieux M, Benabid AL, Berger F

Neurosciences Précliniques, INSERM U318, CHU Michallon, BP217, 38043 Grenoble cedex 09, France. ptropel@yahoo.fr.

Recent results have shown the ability of bone marrow cells to migrate in the brain and to acquire neuronal or glial characteristics. In vitro, bone marrow-derived MSCs can be induced by chemical compounds to express markers of these lineages. In an effort to set up a mouse model of such differentiation, we addressed the neuronal potentiality of mouse MSCs (mMSCs) that we recently purified. These cells expressed nestin, a specific marker of neural progenitors. Under differentiating conditions, mMSCs display a distinct neuronal shape and express neuronal markers NF-L (neurofilament-light, or neurofilament 70 kDa) and class III beta-tubulin. Moreover, differentiated mMSCs acquire neuron-like functions characterized by a cytosolic calcium rise in response to various specific neuronal activators. Finally, we further demonstrated for the first time that clonal mMSCs and their progeny are competent to differentiate along the neuronal pathway, demonstrating that these bone marrow-derived stem cells share characteristics of widely multipotent stem cells unrestricted to mesenchymal differentiation pathways.

Published 4 December 2006 in Stem Cells, 24(12): 2868-76.
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