Secretion profile of human bone marrow stromal cells: donor variability and response to inflammatory stimuli.

Mesenchymal stem cells (MSC) derived from bone marrow are ideal transplants for a variety of CNS disorders and appear to support recovery after injury by secreting therapeutic factors. There is considerable variability in the secretion profile of MSC derived from different donors and it is known that MSC secretion changes in response to inflammatory stimuli, but no comprehensive analysis has been performed to address these issues. Here we show that MSC from seven donors secrete chemokines and cytokines in variable ranges, with some factors showing high variability.

In vitro differentiation of human marrow stromal cells into early progenitors of neural cells by conditions that increase intracellular cyclic AMP.

Human marrow stromal cells (hMSCs) are multipotential stem cells that can be differentiated into bone, cartilage, fat, and muscle. In the experiments here, we found that undifferentiated cultures of hMSCs express some markers characteristic of neural cells such as microtubule-associated protein 1B (MAP1B), neuron-specific tubulin (TuJ-1), neuron-specific enolase (NSE), and vimentin. By treating hMSCs with 0.

Characterization and intraspinal grafting of EGF/bFGF-dependent neurospheres derived from embryonic rat spinal cord.

Recent advances in the isolation and characterization of neural precursor cells suggest that they have properties that would make them useful transplants for the treatment of central nervous system disorders. We demonstrate here that spinal cord cells isolated from embryonic day 14 Sprague-Dawley and Fischer 344 rats possess characteristics of precursor cells. They proliferate as undifferentiated neurospheres in the presence of EGF and bFGF and can be maintained in vitro or frozen, expanded and induced to differentiate into both neurons and glia.

Induction of microtubule-associated protein 1B expression in Schwann cells during nerve regeneration.

Microtubule-associated protein 1B (MAP1B) is expressed at high levels during development of the nervous system and is localized primarily in neurons while specific phosphorylated isoforms of MAP1B are localized exclusively in growing axons. The levels of MAP1B are down regulated in most regions of the adult CNS, but remain high in neurons and axons of the PNS. This study demonstrates that the expression of MAP1B is induced in adult Schwann cells following sciatic nerve lesion and regeneration.

Tau is enriched on dynamic microtubules in the distal region of growing axons.

It is widely held that tau determines the stability of microtubules in growing axons, although direct evidence supporting this hypothesis is lacking. Previous studies have shown that the microtubule polymer in the distal axon and growth cone is the most dynamic of growing axons; it turns over more rapidly and is more sensitive to microtubule depolymerizing drugs than the polymer situated proximally. We reasoned that if the stability of axonal microtubules is directly related to their content of tau, then the polymer in the distal axon should have less tau than the polymer in the proximal axon.