Defined Geldrop Cultures Maintain Neural Precursor Cells

Research output: Contribution to journalResearch articleContributedpeer-review

Contributors

Abstract

Distinct micro-environmental properties have been reported to be essential for maintenance of neural precursor cells (NPCs) within the adult brain. Due to high complexity and technical limitations, the natural niche can barely be studied systematically in vivo. By reconstituting selected environmental properties (adhesiveness, proteolytic degradability, and elasticity) in geldrop cultures, we show that NPCs can be maintained stably at high density over an extended period of time (up to 8 days). In both conventional systems, neurospheres and monolayer cultures, they would expand and (in the case of neurospheres) differentiate rapidly. Further, we report a critical dualism between matrix adhesiveness and degradability. Only if both features are functional NPCs stay proliferative. Lastly, Rho-associated protein kinase was identified as part of a pivotal intracellular signaling cascade controlling cell morphology in response to environmental cues inside geldrop cultures. Our findings demonstrate that simple manipulations of the microenvironment in vitro result in an important preservation of stemness features in the cultured precursor cells.

Details

Original languageEnglish
Article number8433
JournalScientific reports
Volume8
Issue number1
Publication statusPublished - 1 Dec 2018
Peer-reviewedYes

External IDs

PubMed 29849044
ORCID /0000-0002-5304-4061/work/142238814
ORCID /0000-0003-0189-3448/work/159607186

Keywords

ASJC Scopus subject areas