Objective To explore the method that can inducethe mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) to differentiate into the neuronlike cells in vitro．Methods The neuron-like cells were isolated froman SD rat (age, 3 months; weight, 200 g). They underwent a primary culture; theinduced liquid supernatant was collected, and was identified by the cell immunohistochemistry. The C3H1OT1/2 cells were cultured, as an MSCs model, and they were induced into differentiation by β-mercaptoethanol (Group A) and by the liquid supernatant of the neuron-like primary cells (Group B), respectively. The cells were cultured without any induction were used as a control (Group C). Immunohistochemistrywas used to identify the type of the cells． Results The result of the immunochemistry showed that the cells undergoing the primary culture expressed the neurofilament protein (NF) and the neuronspecific enolase (NSE), and they were neuron-like cells. β-mercaptoethanol could induce the C3H1OT1/2 cells toexpress NF and NSE at 2 h, and the expression intensity increased at 5 h. The liquid supernatant of the primarily-cultured neuron-like cells could induce theC3H1OT1/2 cells to express NF and NSE at 1 d, but the expression intensity induced by the liquid supernatant was weaker than that induced by β-mercaptoethanol. The positivity rate and the intensity expression of NSE were higher than those of NF. Conclusion MSCs can differentiate into the neuron-like cells by β-mercaptoethanol and the microenvironment humoral factor, which can pave the way for a further study of the differentiation of MSCs and the effectof the differentiation on the brain trauma repair.
Objective To investigate the possibility of theadipose tissue-derived stromal cells(ADSCs) to differentiate into the neuron-like cells and to explore a new cell source for the transplantation related to the central nervous system. Methods Adipose was digested by collagenase, cultured in the fetal bovine serum containing a medium. Trypse was used to digest the cells and the cell passage was performed. The 3rd to the 9th passage ADSCs were used to make an induction. Isobutylmethylxanthine, indomethacin, insulin, and dexamethasone were used to induce the ADSCs to differentiate into the neuron-like cells and adipocytes. Sudan black B and immunocytochemistry were used to identify the cells. Results A population of the ADSCs could be isolated from the adult human adipose tissue, they were processed to obtain a fibroblast-like population of the cells and could be maintained in vitro for an extendedperiod with the stable population doubling, and they were expanded as the undifferentiated cells in culture for more than 20 passages, which indicated their proliferative capacity. They expressed vimentin and nestin, and characteristics of the neuron precursor stem cells at an early stage of differentiation. And the majority of the ADSCs also expressed the neuron-specific enolase and βⅢ-tubulin, characteristics of the neurons. Isobutyl-methyxanthine, indomethacin, insulin, and dexamethasone induced 40%-50% of ADSCs to differentiate into adipocytes and 0.1%0.2% of ADSCs into neuron-like cells. The neuron-like cells had a complicated morphology of the neurons, and they exhibited a neuron phenotype, expressed nestin, vimentin, neuron-specific enolase and βⅢ-tubulin, but some neuron-like cells also expressed thesmooth muscle actin (SMA), and the characteristics of the smooth muscle cells; however, the neurons from the central nervous system were never reported to express this kind of protein. Therefore, the neuron-like cells from the ADSCs could be regarded as functional neurons. Conclusion Ourresults support the hypothesis that the adult adipose tissue contains the stem cells capable of differentiating into the neuron-like cells, and they can overcome their mesenchymal commitment, which represents an alternative autologous stemcell source for transplantation related to the central nervous system.