Leukemia inhibitory factor favours neurogenic differentiation of long-term propagated human midbrain precursor cells

Critical points for optimizing long-term culture and neural differentiation capacity of rodent and human neural stem cells to facilitate translation into clinical settings

Despite several decades of research on the nature and functional properties of neural stem cells, which brought great advances in regenerative medicine, there is still a plethora of ambiguous protocols and interpretations linked to their applications. Here, we present a whole spectrum of protocol elements that should be standardized in order to obtain viable cell cultures and facilitate their translation into clinical settings. Additionally, this review also presents outstanding limitations and possible problems to be encountered when dealing with protocol optimization. Most importantly, we also outline the critical points that should be considered before starting any experiments utilizing neural stem cells or interpreting their results.

The neuron regrowth is associated with the proliferation of neural precursor cells after leukemia inhibitory factor administration following spinal cord injury in mice

Objectives

To explore whether LIF could promote the proliferation of neural precursor cells (NPCs) and to analyze the correlation between increased NPCs and FluoroGold (FG) labeled neurons in mice after spinal cord injury (SCI).

Methods

Motor behavior was assessed using Rotarod and Platform Hang tests; neurons in the corticospinal and rubrospinal systems were labeled with FG, NPCs were immustained with nestin-FITC conjugate. The numbers of FG-labeled neurons and NPCs were estimated, and the correlation between FG-labeled neurons and NPCs was assessed.

Results

Mice in the SCI group showed negligible recovery of locomotor behavior; in contrast, mice in the LIF group showed a statically significant improvement. Both FG-labeled neurons and NPCs were significantly increased in the LIF group compared to the SCI group, and this increase in FG-labeled neurons and NPCs showed a clear association above the lesion level.

Conclusions

LIF could promote locomotive behaviors in mice post-SCI by encouraging the proliferation of NPCs; LIF may in fact be a potential cytokine for the induction of NPCs post-SCI.

Characterization of Porcine Ventral Mesencephalic Precursor Cells following Long-Term Propagation in 3D Culture

The potential use of predifferentiated neural precursor cells for treatment of a neurological disorder like Parkinson's disease combines stem cell research with previous experimental and clinical transplantation of developing dopaminergic neurons. One current obstacle is, however, the lack of ability to generate dopaminergic neurons after long-term in vitro propagation of the cells. The domestic pig is considered a useful nonprimate large animal model in neuroscience, because of a better resemblance of the larger gyrencephalic pig brain to the human brain than the commonly used brains of smaller rodents. In the present study, porcine embryonic (28–30 days), ventral mesencephalic precursor cells were isolated and propagated as free-floating neural tissue spheres in medium containing epidermal growth factor and fibroblast growth factor 2. For passaging, the tissue spheres were cut into quarters, avoiding mechanical or enzymatic dissociation in order to minimize cellular trauma and preserve intercellular contacts. Spheres were propagated for up to 237 days with analysis of cellular content and differentiation at various time points. Our study provides the first demonstration that porcine ventral mesencephalic precursor cells can be long-term propagated as neural tissue spheres, thereby providing an experimental 3D in vitro model for studies of neural precursor cells, their niche, and differentiation capacity.

LIF-dependent signaling: new pieces in the Lego

LIF, a member of the IL6 family of cytokine, displays pleiotropic effects on various cell types and organs. Its critical role in stem cell models (e.g.: murine ES, human mesenchymal cells) and its essential non redundant function during the implantation process of embryos, in eutherian mammals, put this cytokine at the core of many studies aiming to understand its mechanisms of action, which could benefit to medical applications. In addition, its conservation upon evolution raised the challenging question concerning the function of LIF in species in which there is no implantation. We present the recent knowledge about the established and potential functions of LIF in different stem cell models, (embryonic, hematopoietic, mesenchymal, muscle, neural stem cells and iPSC). We will also discuss EVO-DEVO aspects of this multifaceted cytokine.