Transdifferentiation of Adipose Derived Stem Cells into Neural Stem/Progenitor Cells by Neurosphere Cultivation Assay

Adipose derived stem cells (ADSCs) have the potency to differentiate into the neuron and glial cells. One of the ways to make a large number of neural stem/progenitor cells (NS/PCs) from ADSCs is the usage of neurosphere cultivation. In this procedure, ADSCs proliferate under certain conditions continuously and make multipotent undifferentiated colonies named neurosphere that can differentiate to NS/PCs.
in the current study, adipose stem cells isolated from rat inguinal and pararenal regions. Then these cells differentiated to the NS/PCs using indirect differentiation method (neurosphere culture). Adipose derived stem cells, neurosphere and NS/PCs were evaluated using immunocytochemistry and RT-PCR techniques.
the results indicated ADSCs were immunoreactive to CD90, CD29, CD49d, CD44, CD105 and CD99 without any immunoreactivity for CD106 and CD31. In addition, these cells expressed the genes of Nanog, Oct4 and Sox2. Both of Neurosphere and NS/PCs were immunoreactive to Nestin, NF-68 and NF-200 and also were able to express Nanog, Sox2, NeuroD1, Oct4, Musashi1 and Nestin genes. However, these cells were unable to express MBP gene.
It seems that indirect differentiation is effective for differentiate ADSCs into NS/PCs.