HOME HELP FEEDBACK SUBSCRIPTIONS ARCHIVE SEARCH TABLE OF CONTENTS		QUICK SEARCH:   [advanced] Author: Keyword(s): Year:  Vol:  Page:

This Article Full Text Full Text (PDF) All Versions of this Article: 2005-0037v1 23/8/1044    most recent Alert me when this article is cited Alert me if a correction is posted Citation Map Services Similar articles in this journal Similar articles in PubMed Alert me to new issues of the journal Download to citation manager Reprints/Permissions Citing Articles Citing Articles via Google Scholar Google Scholar Articles by Rowe, E. W. Articles by Jeftinija, S. Search for Related Content PubMed PubMed Citation Articles by Rowe, E. W. Articles by Jeftinija, S.

RAPID COMMUNICATIONS

Development of Functional Neurons from Postnatal Stem Cells In Vitro

Eric W. Rowe, Duan M. Jeftinija, Ksenija Jeftinija, Srdija Jeftinija

Department of Biomedical Sciences, Iowa State University, Ames, Iowa, USA

Key Words. Adult stem cells • Astrocytes • Long-term cultures • Neural stem cell • Calcium transients

Correspondence: Srdija Jeftinija, D.V.M., Ph.D., Department of Biomedical Sciences, Iowa State University, 1098 Vet Med Bldg, Ames, Iowa 50011, USA. Telephone: 515-294-8494; Fax: 515-294-2315; e-mail: sjeftini{at}iastate.edu

In order for stem cells to fulfill their clinical promise, we must understand their developmental transitions and it must be possible to control the differentiation of stem cells into specific cell fates. To understand the mechanism of the sequential restriction and multipotency of stem cells, we have established culture conditions that allow the differentiation of multipotential neural stem cells from postnatal stem cells. We used immunocytochemistry, fluorescence microscopy, and calcium imaging to demonstrate that progeny of adult rat neural stem cells develop into functional neurons that release excitatory neurotransmitters. We also found that the nontoxic heavy chain fragment of tetanus toxin, a toxin that targets neurons with high specificity, retained the specificity toward neural stem cell–derived neurons. These studies show that neural stem cells derived from adult tissues retain the potential to differentiate into functional neurons with morphological and functional properties of mature central nervous system neurons.